Campo de la Naciones exceeds 300 events this year and invoices 27 million Euros in 2004

The activity in the Empresa Municipal Campo de las Naciones S.A., who manages the Palacio Municipal de Congresos, the Auditorio del Parque Juan Carlos I and the Recintos Feriales de la Casa de Campo, where the Pabellon Madrid Arena can be found, received a strong push in 2004. In the Palacio Municipal de Congresos de Madrid and the Recinto Ferial Casa de Campo, the main assets of the Empresa Municipal, held 329 events against the 291 from last year, which represents a 12% increment. Thanks to this, the volume of the business will be around 27 million Euros, representing an advance of 3% with respect to 2003 and will allow the year to close with a positive figure. In this year, there will be almost 2 million persons that will pass through the facilities against the 1.6 million in 2003.

More than half of the events held in the facilities of the Sociedad Municipal were from the Economy and Corporate sector.

With respect to the year 2005, one of the most important challenges is to start the operation of the Madrid Arena, located in the Recinto Ferial Casa de Campo. This space, located in the old rockodromo and with the capacity for up to 12,000 spectactors, will be finishing in the first semester of 2005 and will be one of the main facility for the Madrid 2012 project, and where the representatives of the COI can visit in February. It is already in the dossier presented by the Madrid candidancy for the basketball competition that will be held in this modern pavillion.

The Madrid Arena, giving its versatility and connection with the Cristal pavillion (more than 20,000m2) and an auxiliary pavillion (with capacity for more than 2,000 persons) will develop sports events, concerts and shows as well as trade fairs and exhibitions. At this moment, it has successfully hosted three editions of the Tennis Master Series in Madrid, with the attendance of more than 30,000 persons, the Pre-Olympic Volleyball Championship and the Opera Monumental Carmina Burana, on the last 15 of December.

In addition to the organisation of congresses, trade fairs and meetings, the Empresa Municipal has a new objective: acquisition, construction, restoration and rental of buildings for public use. For this, in 2005, it will officially open two buildings located in number 72 and 83 in Mayor Street, that will be rented to the Ayuntamiento de Madrid.

Lastly, the Mayor of Madrid has recently announced from the Ayuntamiento de la Villa, through the Empresa Municipal Campo de las Naciones, it will go ahead with the construction and management of a new Congress Hall in the municipal land located in the old Ciudad Deportiva del Real Madrid. This new Hall will be constructed within five years and will have the participation of other public and private instituitions in a percentage no more than 25%.