Five hundred new rooms, about 150 new job opportunities and potentially more, and larger, meetings. It is definite: Gothia Towers will build a third tower, starting this autumn.
“This is terrific. I think it’ll have favourable effects for all of Göteborg”, says Carin Kindbom, Managing Director of the Swedish Exhibition & Congress Centre.
There has been a lot of buzz at the Exhibition and Congress Centre for some time – the project of building a third tower was launched back in 2007. Last year, when Carin Kindbom was appointed Managing Director, the project was revived after having been mothballed during the economic downturn. The conditions are now considered right and the much anticipated decision to build a third tower has been made. “We have witnessed a major turnaround during the autumn, and we have an incredibly strong convention year under our belts, so we now feel that the conditions are right”, explains Kindblom.
“This September we will put the shovels in the ground for the expansion that will give us the largest centrally located, wholly integrated, convention centre”.
Gothia Towers will acquire a third, 100-metre-high tower, 29 stories high, and an addition to its current East Tower will bring its height to 25 stories. The West Tower, currently the highest tower with its 23 stories, will become the lowest.
The entire project is to be finished in the latter part of 2014. Göteborg will then be able to boast of a convention centre ranking among the elite of such facilities in the world, as well as the second-largest hotel in Western Europe.
“The new tower is based on a four-star standard, but with concept flexible enough to enable it to appeal to summer visitors to Göteborg. The current East Tower, which will be named the “Crown Tower”, will have 51 five-star rooms and remain open as usual throughout the renovation”, says Carin Kindbom.
Why the need for a third tower?
“Nowadays our congress limit is 7,000 delegates, and hotel rooms are the greatest limitation. There are 6,000 hotel rooms within a 20-minute radius of the Exhibition and Congress Centre. Since our concept is based on proximity, we cannot offer that level of quality if they have to be transported any farther.
“Combined with the contribution of the Hotel Post, in 2014 we will be able to receive 8,000 delegates, but this also involves a capacity to offer more qualitative meetings in the downtown area – meetings with, say, 3,000–4,000 participants. We will also strengthen our position in small conferences, expanding our offering with twelve new meeting spaces, of which seven will feature a panoramic view from the 28th floor, and several lounges.
According to Carin Kindbom, however, the larger impulse to enhance the City of Göteborg as a conference site will not end with the building of the new tower: the plan is to continue to grow. “Just how that will take place in a subsequent phase is something we continue to work out. But the objective is some form of expansion.”
