TECA Aberdeen rebrands to 'P&J Live' before August opening

TECA – the new £333m events complex in Aberdeen – has rebranded to P&J Live after one of Scotland’s most well-known publishers, DC Thomson, snapped up the naming rights in a five-year-deal.

The 15,000-capacity arena, located next to Aberdeen airport, has been named after north-east Scotland’s most widely read newspaper, the Press & Journal, after signing a deal with the venue operator for an ‘undisclosed sum’.

DC Thomson Media, which owns the P&J and local Aberdeen title the Evening Express, has agreed a deal with the venue’s operator SMG Europe to become the inaugural ‘naming-rights sponsor’.

The venue, which boasts two hotels on site, which will not be part of the naming rights deal, is expected to open to the public following a ‘friends and family day’ on August 10; it will be showcased at the VisitScotland stand H400 at The Meetings Show at Olympia London, from 26-27 June.

The show is a platform to bring the meetings and events industry together across two days. P&J Live replaces the current Aberdeen Exhibition and Conference Centre (AECC), and will offer more flexible and technologically advanced space.

Kim Stephen, Head of Sales – Conferences, Meetings & Banqueting at P&J Live said: “The Meetings Show is a great platform to showcase how P&J Live can compete nationally and internationally for events, as well as broadening the appeal of the North East as a conference destination of choice.”

The venue is state-of-the-art encompassing 48,000 sqm of world class multi-purpose event space including, seven conference suites, three exhibition halls, nine meeting rooms, a superior 15,000 capacity arena, luxurious hospitality suites, show deck, VIP lounge, and a high-end 150 seater restaurant.

With unrivalled public transport connections, P&J Live is located right next to Aberdeen International Airport – the UK’s most regionally connected airport with links to key hub airports, including London Heathrow, Luton and Southend airports. P&J Live is only a few short minutes from the city’s new bypass, and in prime position for the improved rail links between Aberdeen and the North of Scotland, due to be completed this year.

P&J Live is the UK’s single largest investment of its kind and one of many occurring across Aberdeen, as the energy city looks beyond oil and gas and continues to grow in a range of exciting new industries. Aberdeen International Airport is undergoing a £20 million expansion, while £30 million is being spent on rejuvenating the city’s art gallery. New hotels are going up across the city and the new Marischal Square Development, with its refreshing mix of offices, cafes, restaurants and hotels, adds to the city centre’s vibrant and cosmopolitan appeal.

The site is extremely environmentally friendly boasting its own energy centre, which will use local renewable resources and advanced technologies to product an energy eco-system. P&J Live will be the most sustainable venue of its type in the UK upon opening.