Hamilton Island offers below $1bn: sources

Hamilton Island in the Whitsundays. Picture: Lisa Maree

The family owners of the luxury resort Hamilton Island are understood to have opted to suspend its sale plans after offers for the luxury resorts came in below $1bn.

Sources say that the Oatley family were angling for a price slightly north of that number.

Among the groups that are believed to have cast an eye over the asset are Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, Brookfield, Blackstone, Starwood Capital and Mulpha.

The island asset has been up for sale through investment bank UBS, but as revealed by The Australian on Monday, the sale process has now been suspended.

It comes after the sale process of tourism company Journey Beyond was recently placed on hold after also being on offer through the Swiss investment bank on behalf of its private equity owners.

The Whitsundays island in Queensland is owned by the family of the late billionaire Bob Oatley, which has transformed it into a world class destination.

Unlike other Queensland resorts, Hamilton Island is attractive as it sports an international runway.

Since Mr Oatley acquired Hamilton Island in 2003, the Oatley family have spent hundreds of millions of dollars upgrading its tourism infrastructure, including reconnecting power from the mainland after it was accidentally cut.

The Oatleys developed the luxury resort qualia, which opened in 2006, and also built the Hamilton Island Yacht Club and Villas, as well as spending $45m on the Hamilton Island Golf Club.

But Hamilton Island is considered an asset that needs strong operational focus, and will likely be due for more capital spending.