SHANGHAI - Shanghai, China's economic center, plans to build a super-sized exhibition center that is likely to become the world's largest, a municipal official said Sept 8.

The Shanghai municipal government has set up a headquarters to command construction of ancillary facilities to the China Expo Center, which will be located at the Shanghai Hongqiao Central Business District, said Sha Hailin, deputy secretary general of the Shanghai municipal government, at a press briefing.

The project will cost 23 billion yuan ($3.6 billion), and the first-phase investment has been secured, said Sha, without elaborating on the amount.

The center, composed of a main exhibition hall and ancillary facilities, will cover an area of about 1,560 mu (104 hectares), with an indoor area of 400,000 square meters and 100,000 square meters of outdoor exhibition areas, Sha said.