Press information of Koelnmesse

Koelnmesse GmbH today announced that it will be extending its contract with Oliver Frese, which currently runs until the end of 2024, by a further five years to 31 December 2029. Frese has been the Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Koelnmesse since 2020.

- To mark its 100th anniversary, Koelnmesse is opening its new event and congress location Confex with space for 6,200 guests, directly at the Cologne Messe/Deutz ICE railway station. - State-of-the-art venue in the heart of Europe with perfect transport links raises the bar for congresses, trade fairs and corporate events. - Konrad Adenauer founded Koelnmesse in 1924 to drive the economy of the West and as a European peace project. - Among the 2,000 guests attending the anniversary celebrations are Minister President Henrik Wüst and numerous other public figures. To mark its 100th anniversary, Koelnmesse is hosting a grand opening ceremony for Europe’s most cutting-edge event and congress centre: Confex. The technologically and environmentally groundbreaking new building creates new opportunities for innovative event formats in the region. After almost three years of construction, a core element of the one-billion-euro investment programme Koelnmesse 3.0 is launching on schedule.

- A strong upswing after the COVID-19 lockdown: Koelnmesse announces record sales of 416 million euro and the highest result in the company's history - Financial prudence remains the guiding principle: offsetting deficits from the pandemic years and strengthening equity - Anniversary and inauguration: Koelnmesse opens Confex, a state-of-the-art event and conference centre, to mark its 100th

Koelnmesse and dmg events, two global leaders in the exhibition industry, have officially signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to collaborate on developing key trade exhibitions across the Middle East.

- Registration open for 91st UFI Global Congress, taking place 20-23 November 2024 - Largest, most global event of the year hosted by Koelnmesse in Cologne, Germany

Silke de Witt is taking over the financial reins at Koelnmesse from 1 July 2024, and will also become a member of the Executive Board. She is joining the company on 1 April 2024 and will share the role with Volker Ahrberg, Member of the Executive Board and sole authorised signatory for Koelnmesse, on an interim basis. Volker Ahrberg will be retiring at the end of June in a planned departure.

Koelnmesse is launching an ambitious sustainability strategy to become climate-neutral five years earlier than planned. Alongside E.ON, Koelnmesse is consolidating its pioneering role as it plans to save 5,800 tonnes of CO2 per year from 2028 onwards at one of the world’s largest city-centre trade fair sites. A partnership between E.ON and RheinEnergie will enable an innovative and effective combination of decentralised generation and centralised district heating. Within the framework of a new energy partnership with E.ON and RheinEnergie, by 2028, Koelnmesse will have completely switched the heating supply for its trade fair grounds in Cologne – the eighth largest trade fair site in the world – to climate-friendly technology. The systems used will be powered by sustainable sources such as air, groundwater and the sun. In innovative combination with the RheinEnergie district heating system, this new heating concept will secure significant energy and CO2 savings amounting to 5,800 tonnes per year. These plans form part of the sustainability strategy that Koelnmesse is launching today, which involves the company and Koelnmesse's own events reaching the requirements for climate-neutrality as early as 2030. This is five years earlier than initially planned.

Koelnmesse and Fiere di Parma proudly announce the expansion of their partnership. Having successfully collaborated in the Food-Tec industry for the past 8 years, the two organizations are now extending their cooperation to the Food & Beverage sector.

• Koelnmesse distinguished by FOCUS MONEY and DEUTSCHLAND TEST as the most renowned German trade fair location with the highest rating • Analysts from IMWF (Institute for Management and Economic Research) collected and evaluated several million mentions in news and social media concerning around 18,000 companies for the ranking Koelnmesse achieved full points and first place among all German trade fair locations: DEUTSCHLAND TEST and FOCUS MONEY have named Koelnmesse "Company of the Year" 2024 in a study conducted by IMWF (Institute for Management and Economic Research). "We are delighted to take first place among trade fair locations in Germany. This achievement further confirms our continued efforts to offer our trade fair visitors and exhibitors first-class experiences. It recognises our success and serves as an incentive in our ongoing pursuit of innovative and sustainable paths for our customers in the future," says Koelnmesse CEO, Gerald Böse.

Managing Director Keith Tsui leaves Koelnmesse Michiel Kruse (58) is assuming responsibility for Koelnmesse's business in Mainland China, succeeding Keith Tsui, who is leaving the company at his own request. Mathias Küpper (48) will assume management responsibility for the subsidiary in Hong Kong, as part of his existing role as Vice President Asia-Pacific at Koelnmesse. Mainland China and Hong Kong are important focus regions for Koelnmesse. The local subsidiaries, which were founded in 2002, organise trade fairs locally and also serve as the contacts for Chinese customers participating in Koelnmesse events globally.