Bupa dumps sale of New Zealand aged-care business

Bupa also owns aged-care facilities in Australia and there has been talk in the past it may also try to sell assets here. Picture: iStock.

Aged-care provider Bupa has called off its sale process across the Tasman, according to sources.

The company had hired investment bank Macquarie Capital to test buyer interest for a sale.

However, sources say the plan is now off, with the most logical buyer, EQT, which owns Metlifecare, not keen to pursue the business, which consists of 48 aged-care homes and is thought to be worth close to $NZ1bn ($900m).

Earlier, a Japanese suitor expressed interest.

The sale process for Bupa comes at a time of critical labour shortages in the aged-care sector both here and across the Tasman.

It is estimated that Australia will need an additional 3000 nurses in 2023 because of government requirements for additional aged-care staffing.

Bupa also owns aged-care facilities in Australia and there has been talk in the past it may also try to sell assets here.

The Australian reported last week that data from the aged care quality and safety royal commission revealed that Bupa, which has 59 active homes, copped 28 penalties from January 2020 to September 30 for non-compliance notices, sanctions and notices requiring the provider to fix high-risk or severe problems, the worst track record in the industry.

The provider operates facilities in Australia and New Zealand with a total asset value of $49bn.

Bupa ANZ boasted an underlying profit of $407m in the 2021 financial year, up 69 per cent from $240m the year before.

The private provider has faced similar problems in its British headquarters after a court ordered it to pay £3m over the death of a pensioner at a nursing home in Essex.

A spokeswoman for Bupa said it was committed to providing high-quality care; however, ongoing workforce challenges had severely affected its operations.