The International Convention Centre Sydney (ICC Sydney) has announced it will be able to proceed with hosting exhibitions, subject to one person per four square metres of space and no capacity limit.
The announcement came after the venue received advice from the NSW Department of Health.
ICC Sydney chief Geoff Donaghy noted that the one exception to this exemption is exhibitions that form part of a corporate event, such as conferences, which are still subject to NSW government capacity limits of 300 people per event.
However, Donaghy added that this was also currently being reviewed.
“For standalone exhibitions that do not form part of a corporate event, we now have the opportunity to operate with one person to every four square metres across our 35,000 square metres of exhibition space and in line with our EventSafe operating guide, while meeting the current NSW government restrictions,” he said.
“This much-welcomed update is a step forward on our path to recovery and we will immediately move ahead with the restart of this important market segment.
“To this end, we look forward to welcoming the Reed Gift Fairs and Life Instyle back to ICC Sydney in February 2021.
“While our industry still faces huge barriers before we can return to business as usual – the biggest of these being capacity limits and locked interstate and international borders – this announcement is an important next step.
“I hope this news will help to boost confidence and create momentum for our sector. ICC Sydney remains open and currently running a range of in-person events on site, as well as running virtual and hybrid events, in line with current regulations.”
The announcement comes after ICC Sydney revealed delegates attending events at the venue generated $510 million in direct expenditure for NSW, despite the economic fallout from COVID-19 during the 2019/20 financial operating year.
