The Malaysian state of Penang has been adding on event facilities, with its latest large-scale venue – Penang Waterfront Convention Centre (PWCC) – set to open in April 2025, but its CVB chief said space for business events could run out in the next two years, as a result of strong growth in demand among regional and international organisers.
Speaking to TTGmice at IMEX Frankfurt on May 14, Ashwin Gunasekeran, CEO of Penang Convention & Exhibition Bureau (PCEB), said the destination’s business events industry has been doing very well, buoyed by improvements in air connectivity; intense destination marketing, particularly in luring technology-focused exhibitions; and greater value-for-money proposition due to the weak Malaysian ringgit against currencies of important client markets like Europe.
Referencing PCEB’s presence at IMEX Frankfurt 2024 this week, Gunasekeran said: “The European (meetings and events) market has been strong for Penang even before the pandemic, and now demand is lifted by the currency exchange, which favours Europeans. Business requests are much higher than before.”
Encouraged by the soon-to-come PWCC, which will boast a pillarless exhibition hall offering 7,060m2 of net lettable area, PCEB is pursuing more exhibitions, particularly those related to technology.
Gunasekeran said there are many event requests for the PWCC, with expressions of interest emerging from Asia-Pacific, Europe and the UK.
“Interest from outside of Asia forms the majority, as Penang houses more than 400 multinational firms. With Penang seen as the Silicon Valley of the East, the destination also naturally attracts more international tech event organisers,” he added.
Underscoring PCEB’s determination to grow its exhibitions potential, the bureau has joined UFI, the Global Association of the Exhibition Industry as a member.
At present, Penang’s two purpose-built convention and exhibiton venues – Setia SPICE and the PICCA Convention Centre @ Butterworth Arena – along with meeting facilities offered by the many international-class hotels are able to meet events demand.
The recent scale-up of global air connections into the state has also attracted event organisers. New flights from China, Hong Kong, Bangkok, Indonesia, and Qatar materialised in 2023, while Flydubai’s daily Dubai-Penang service had just commenced in February.
“All our venues are doing so well, and based on the pace of growth now, I feel that they may not have capacity for more events in two years’ time,” he remarked.
However, he was not perturbed and said every meetings city would hit its capacity ceiling one day; the solution was to have a plan for continued infrastructure development.
He believes Penang’s hotel developments can support high demand for venues.
“Penang will welcome many more new hotels in the coming years. Marriott International has a lot of properties in Penang, and the five-star Penang Marriott Hotel is the latest to open (in February this year). Within short months, this hotel has secured many association meetings. Marriott International also announced this month a new Westin for Penang, opening in 2026,” said Gunasekeran.
Penang Marriott Hotel offers 10 function rooms with 904m2 of space. The Westin Hotel, Penang will also cater to meetings, with venues including a grand ballroom.
