ICC Sydney celebrates five years of operation

International Convention Centre Sydney (ICC Sydney) is this week celebrating five years of operation, having contributed to $2.53 billion of visitor expenditure and a host of community benefits by consistently delivering successful events.

With 250 events already secured for the first half of 2022 and events in the pipeline through to 2031, ICC Sydney expects a return to delivering $1 billion annually to the NSW community within the next five years.

Following a $3.4 billion redevelopment of the convention, exhibition, entertainment centre and its precinct by the NSW Government through a Public Private Partnership, ICC Sydney Chief Executive, Geoff Donaghy said the past five years have seen the team’s agility, innovation and resilience come to the fore.

Donaghy highlights “after launching the venue in December 2016, the team has delivered 2,700 conventions, exhibitions, banquets, seminars and entertainment events and welcomed 4.5 million attendees through our doors.

“Agility, innovation and a focus on world class service has resulted in success for our customers and our community even under the most challenging of conditions.”

NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet congratulated ICC Sydney on its ongoing commitment to the people of NSW and added “ICC Sydney attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors through its doors every year, adding vibrancy to our city and acting as a catalyst for economic investment in innovation and through its long supply chain reaching out to the state’s regions.”

Darling Harbour Live Project Coordinator, Peter Robertson said the Public Private Partnership approach to ICC Sydney had been a great success and he congratulated all the participants in the project – the New South Wales Government together with consortium members Lendlease, Hostplus, Aware Super, Capella Capital, ASM Global and Spotless FM.

“The ongoing success of ICC Sydney is made possible by many stakeholders and we look forward to many more fruitful years of returns for our major investors HostPlus and Aware Super and the New South Wales community more broadly,” said Robertson.

Although there have been many triumphs over the venue's five years in operation, the below are key highlights of note:

• Keith Urban’s ripCORD world tour concert at Aware Super Theatre (formerly ICC Sydney Theatre) kicked off the proceedings on 14th December 2016.

• Delivering over $40 million alone, the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication (SWIFT)’s flagship event SIBOS (SWIFT International Banking Operations Seminar) attracted over 7,500 business leaders, academics and entrepreneurs from 150 countries to Sydney in 2018.

• World leading legacy program to connect event organisers with Aboriginal owned businesses, emerging artists and entrepreneurs, students and sustainable event solutions was launched in 2017.

• ICC Sydney became the first convention centre to commit to a Reconciliation Action Plan in 2018.

• The bi-annual PACIFIC International Maritime Exposition was held twice at the Centre with more than 21,000 attendees attending the 2019 exhibition from 35 countries.

• Celebrity speakers and performers including Hilary Clinton, Simon Sinek, Seinfeld, Cher and Elton John have walked the floorboards of ICC Sydney theatres.

• Hundreds of millions of dollars in business has transacted on the show floors at around 224 exhibitions in the Exhibition Centre.

• Supporting charities through the pandemic, youth wellbeing charity Stand Tall, held every year at Aware Super Theatre since 2017 was broadcast for the first time in 2020 and attracted 6,000 students in person plus 100,000 remote attendees in 2021.

View NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet’s video message,

View ICC Sydney’s Five Year Celebration showcase

Image: ICC Sydney's extraordinary team.