popular, according to the International Congress and Con- vention Association, is less than an hour flight away — why did IGU choose Kuala Lumpur? For several reasons. Malaysia is the world’s 15th-largest natural-gas producer, and many industry leaders are touting Asia as a key region for the development of natural gas. Zhou Jiping, president of China National Petroleum Corporation, told delegates during his keynote speech that it’s likely that the “Asia Pacific will surpass the U.S. and Europe to become the largest natural-gas consumer in the world.” Petronas, Malaysia’s state-owned oil and gas company and WGC2012’s main sponsor, is in a race to build the world’s first floating Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) facility, and offered confer- ence delegates half-day tours of its current on-shore LNG Complex in nearby Sarawak, the world’s second-largest LNG production facility in a single location. The company also played a large role in hooking the organizers during the bid process. Petronas financed a new air-conditioned pedestrian bridge that now links the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre to the popular 1.37-million- square-foot Pavilion Kuala Lumpur shopping mall and a number of area hotels. “It took the personal involvement of senior officials from

Petronas as well as government and airline representatives,” Datuk Peter Brokenshire, the convention center’s general manager, said of the bid that Malaysia made for WGC2012 more than seven years ago. “It was a large, formidable delega- tion that presented a case very forcibly that Malaysia was the right place for the event. It was important that WGC come to Southeast Asia for the first time.” Malaysia is centrally located in Southeast Asia, with Kuala

Lumpur (locals call the city KL for short) as its bustling, mul- ticultural hub, making it an easy gateway to the rest of Asia, India, the Middle East, and Europe. With large populations of native Malay, Indians, and Chinese, both KL and the rest of the country are commonly seen as a cultural melting pot of the Asian continent. “We are strategically located in the heart of Southeast Asia,

Malaysian Flavor WGC2012 attendees were immersed in the rich culture of host city Kuala Lumpur.

between the two booming economies of China and India. With its neighbors, Southeast Asia accounts for over 50 percent of the world’s population,” said Ho Yoke Ping, general manager of sales and marketing for the Malaysia Convention & Exhibition Bureau. “Malaysia is ranked as one of the best value destina- tions in the world, making it very affordable for delegates to visit. It’s an easy place to stage international conventions.” The destination’s ability to draw high attendance from numerous regions plays a major role with events like WGC, for which attendees come from around the world to connect with companies with which they might never get face-to-face time otherwise. “My favorite part [of the conference] was the opportunity to network with people from all around the world,” said Pedro Henrique Moura Quintela Ribeiro, Rio

PCMA.ORG AUGUST 2012 PCMA CONVENE 73