New facility added to Radius Care's portfolio

Brien Cree

Radius Care has acquired Tauranga's Althorp Hospital, a well-established aged care facility based in Pyes Pa, bringing its total number of facilities nationally to 21.

Managing director Brien Cree said the purchase was a very sound investment that would add to the performance of Radius Care, New Zealand's largest privately owned aged care company.

The hospital was bought from the owners of neighbouring retirement facility Althorp Village, the Church and Munro families, who have retained control of the village. The latest acquisition comes two years after Radius Care purchased another Tauranga facility, Matua Hospital, in Levers Rd.

"We're always looking for acquisitions," said Mr Cree. "But it's not often they come up. There are not that many facilities like Althorp Hospital, which meet the criteria of having a good reputation and sufficient scale."

Mr Cree said it was important for Radius to acquire facilities where they could get economies of scale.

"We're confident that Althorp has the potential to run even more effectively under our management," he said. "We're very pleased that Althorp has been sold to a New Zealand-owned, private aged care provider, rather than to one of the larger overseas aged care companies."

In 2010, Mr Cree led a management buyout of Radius Residential Care from major shareholder Kuwait Finance House.

The company was formerly part of Radius Health, established in 2003, which included Radius Medical and Radius Pharmacy companies.

John Collyns, executive director of the NZ Retirement Villages Association, said Radius care would have the economies of scale to make Althorp work. He said that, despite the presence of large listed companies, a majority of aged care beds in New Zealand were provided by privately owned companies.

"The Bay of Plenty has the highest proportion by population of retirement villages in New Zealand, with more than 16 per cent of the region's over-75 population living independently in the region's villages," he said.