BEIJING — As the International Broadcasting Center (IBC) and Main Press Center (MPC) for the Beijing Winter Olympic Games, the China National Convention Center Phase II has completed its main steel structure engineering 76 days ahead of schedule, the construction unit confirmed on Sept 1.

The construction scale of Phase II is 1.5 times of that of Phase I, with a total construction area of 780,000 square meters, but the construction period has been reduced by one year.

The underground part of the second phase was finished in November last year and the construction of the steel structure above ground was interrupted by the outbreak of this year's COVID-19 pandemic.

The construction unit was quick to adjust its construction plan and coordinate with the raw material suppliers outside Beijing in a bid to speed up the schedule when construction resumed.

The MPC and IBC will be delivered to BOCOG in July 2021.