30 days to go until first chance to see P&J Live

Today marks 30 days to go until P&J Live – the multi-million-pound new events venue in Aberdeen - opens to the public for the first time.

A free, ticketed event called Preview @ P&J Live is being held on Saturday 10 August 2019 to showcase the new complex which is being delivered by Aberdeen City Council and its development partner, Henry Boot Developments (HBD).

New images and short videos are being released through social media over the next four weeks showing different parts of P&J Live and the two new on-site hotels.

P&J Live is at the heart of the TECA complex, which is being constructed by Robertson Group, and will provide a new world-class facility for Scotland close to Aberdeen International Airport. The 15,000-capacity main arena will host conferences, exhibitions and music concerts, and is expected to attract major artists and events to the city. The facility will also boast three further conference/exhibition halls, four multi-purpose conference rooms, and nine meeting rooms. There are also the two on-site hotels within the TECA complex.

There will be several test events including the public open day which are being held before the venue's first conference, Offshore Europe, which runs from September 3 to 6. Alice Cooper and comedians Jack Whitehall and Russell Howard have already been confirmed to perform at P&J Live later this year, and Elton John will bring his farewell tour to the venue in November 2020.

The facility is expected to contribute an additional 4.5 million visitors, £113 million of visitor spend and £63 million net Gross Value Added to the Scottish economy over 10 years. It will also result in the creation of 352 full-time-equivalent permanent positions by year 10 of operations.

Aberdeen City Council Co-Leader Councillor Jenny Laing said: "We're at a very exciting point in the build and it's been fantastic to watch it progressing since we cut the turf just over three years ago, on 5 July 2016.

"We only have 30 days to go until people can come and have a look around and see for themselves the scale and quality the Council's new multi-million-pound venue which is designed to compete on a global scale."

Aberdeen City Council Co-Leader Councillor Douglas Lumsden said: "The new venue fits in with our Regional Economic Strategy which has the themes of diversification into industries other than oil and gas.

"We are confident that TECA, with P&J Live at its heart, will attract major artists, conferences and events to the region which will appeal to both local residents and encourage more national and international tourists to come and spend time in our beautiful city."

Along with a chance to look around the new venue, Preview @ P&J Live will include entertainment from local musicians, the venue's food and drink offering, cooking demonstrations, and kids' activities. Tickets are available from pandjlive.com.

Nick Waight, Managing Director at P&J Live, said "It's great to be at this stage of the development of P&J Live. We're excited to give everyone a chance to come and have a look around our new home, and help us test some things out while also sampling what we'll have on offer at this world-class new venue. We're delighted with the support we've had in bringing this new venue to the city and want to offer all a chance to take a look before our busy calendar of events begins."

Nigel Munro, HBD's Regional Project Manager, said: "The finish line is now in sight for this flagship project for Aberdeen, the north east and the whole of Scotland. It has been fantastic to watch TECA progressing and it's very exciting to now mark the 30-day countdown until we open the doors of this truly world-class event, hospitality and exhibition space to the public. Everyone at HBD is immensely proud to have been involved with this iconic build alongside Aberdeen City Council and main contractor Robertson. TECA, and its two on site hotels, constitute one of our largest major projects to date and seeing it take shape over the years, and to now be so close to opening, is hugely satisfying for everyone involved."

Robertson Group's Chief Executive Officer Derek Shewan said: "The TECA complex has been three years in the making and this is a proud time for all involved. This has been a wonderful project for the Robertson team with some interesting challenges along the way, all of which have been resolved in the true spirit of collaboration with all the partners. From the east end of the site being located immediately below a flightpath, to the diversion of an existing watercourse, and the re-routing of major utilities, there has been no challenge that we haven't overcome together. We look forward to seeing the reaction of the preview visitors to P&J Live and are confident that it will be their first visit of many to this iconic new entertainment venue."