Nexus Hospitals leads race to buy Evolution Healthcare

Evolution Healthcare has about five private hospitals in New Zealand and a number of day surgeries. Picture: iStock

The Queensland Investment Corporation-owned Nexus Hospitals is shaping as a strong contender in the competition to buy Evolution Healthcare from Pacific Equity Partners.

QIC took a 75 per cent stake in Nexus in 2019 and sources say it is expected to bid strongly for the Evolution Healthcare business across the Tasman when the sales process gets under way.

Nexus Hospitals is Australia’s second biggest day hospital platform, owning a portfolio of day and short-stay hospitals across six states and territories.

Already, Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan is vying for Evolution Healthcare, for sale through Stanton Road Partners.

The sales process is due to get underway now.

Ontario partnered with the NZ Super Fund last year to buy Healthscope’s New Zealand pathology operation for $NZ550m ($527m) and will likely bid with NZ Super again.

Evolution Healthcare has about five private hospitals in New Zealand and a number of day surgeries. It was bought by PEP in 2019 for about $300m.

The sale by PEP comes after it recently purchased the Healthe Care Australian portfolio of acute care hospitals for about $400m.

Elsewhere, the sales process for Elliott Management‘s Australian solar farms gets started on Monday after teaser documents were sent out at the beginning of last week.

Working on the sale are Azure Capital and Bank of America. The assets are expected to be worth more than $500m.

The assets are held with Elliott Green Power Australia and the solar farms generate more than 300MW of power.

Projects on offer will include the Susan River Solar Farm in Queensland and the Childers Solar Farm and Nevertire Solar farms in NSW.