Construction of the Penang Waterfront Convention Centre (PWCC), located at The Light City in Gelugor, Penang, has topped out, with completion on track for 2Q2025.
PWCC will feature a gross floor area of around 30,650m2, and facilities will include a large kitchen, pre-function area, a rooftop area, with views of the Penang Bridge, and 19 meeting rooms. Its main exhibition hall will have 7,060m2 of net lettable area and seat up to 5,500 guests banquet-style or up to 8,000 in a theatre arrangement.
The venue will be part of The Light City’s first development phase, which will also include a retail mall, a hotel, office towers and two residential projects.
Penang Convention & Exhibition Bureau’s (PCEB) CEO, Ashwin Gunasekeran, shared that with the imminent opening of PWCC – a prime venue for holding large-scale exhibitions – the state bureau will focus on securing more B2B international exhibitions.
Ashwin elaborated: “Penang is a manufacturing economic powerhouse and now that we have a venue for holding exhibitions, we can target this segment and support more investment into the state.”
To date, PCEB has secured exhibitions in the heavy machinery, robotics and Artificial Intelligence sectors.
Gracie Geikie, director of Place Borneo, added: “PWCC will provide an additional advantage to Penang and Malaysia by enhancing our country’s ability to bid for and oversee international exhibitions.
“Malaysia is already well-equipped to manage conferences, so this will further expand our business events sector. I’m looking forward to this development as we continue to grow our business in Malaysia.”
On whether he anticipates the competition with a new venue entering the market, Francis Teo, head, Setia Convention Centres, commented: “Setia SPICE and PWCC cater to distinct market segments, collectively attracting a wider range of business events to Penang. Setia SPICE primarily focuses on conventions and corporate events, while PWCC targets the exhibition segment.”
