Australian Unity Healthcare Property Trust has acquired Lot 2, 33 Myoora Road / Lot 4A Larool Road, Terrey Hills, NSW, for $8 million to develop a new private hospital.

The four-hectare site is located in Terrey Hills, NSW, on the northern beaches region of metropolitan Sydney, some 25 kilometres north of Sydney’s CBD.

Australian Unity has also secured development approval for an $88 million private surgical and rehabilitation hospital on the site. It will include 84 beds and focus on spinal surgery, neurosurgery, orthopaedic surgery, vascular surgery, interventional cardiology, pain management and opthalmology.

Initially, the hospital will include seven operating theatres, one cardiac catheterisation laboratory, 56 surgical inpatient beds, 20 rehabilitation beds, eight ICU beds, associated clinical support units —including radiology, pathology and pharmacy—a 148-space car park and consulting suites.

Hospital operator Wyvern Health Pty Ltd has signed a 30-year lease and major works agreement with Australian Unity to develop and operate the hospital. Construction is underway and scheduled for completion in mid-2023, when it will be known as Wyvern Private Hospital.

Chris Smith, General Manager Healthcare Property, Australian Unity, said that Australian Unity was focused on investing in the critical social infrastructure that meets the needs of Australia's growing and ageing communities while delivering value for investors."

We know demand is strong in Terrey Hills—the Northern Sydney catchment is a highly insured population with 75 percent covered by private health insurance, compared with just over 50 percent across Greater Sydney¹", he said.

"Terrey Hills provides us with opportunities to create both immediate and long-term value for investors", he said.

Ian Campbell, CEO, Wyvern Health Pty Ltd, said there had been strong interest from doctors operating across the target specialities in joining the new hospital.

"The attractive, high-growth traits of the Northern Sydney catchment will provide strong demand for the proposed service and infrastructure model", he said.

"We continue to work with local clinicians, and specialists in tailoring the hospital's offering, as well as local communities in ensuring its development prioritises the community's unique natural environment", Mr Campbell said.

The Healthcare Property Trust owns 75 high-grade healthcare assets, including hospitals, medical clinics, aged-care facilities, day surgeries, medical offices, consulting rooms, rehabilitation units, radiology and pathology centres.

It's been a busy start to the year for the Fund. It has recently announced the acquisition of a key site in Adelaide’s Bio Med City Precinct as well as the lodgement of a development application for $150 million expansion works at Robina Private Hospital on the Gold Coast.

It is also advancing a $150 million private hospital development at Meadowbrook opposite Logan Hospital and a $50 million development in the Birtinya Health Hub across the road from the Sunshine Coast University Hospital.

For the 12 months to 31 December 2021, it delivered investors a total return of 36.591%; its three-year total return was 19.12% pa and over five years its total return was 17.21% pa.²

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About Australian Unity
Established in 1840, Australian Unity is a member-owned wellbeing company with 400,000 members and more than 700,000 customers. Our range of health, wealth and care products and services provides member, customer and community value that is supportive of personal and community wellbeing.

¹ Public Health Information Development Unit (PHIDU), 2021. Social Health Atlas of Australia: Local Government Areas, May 2021. https://phidu.torrens.edu.au/social-health-atlases/data#social-health-atlases-of-australia-local-government-areas

² Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance, returns are calculated after fees and assume the reinvestment of distributions.