Gina Rinehart retreats from Great Keppel Island resort buy

Gina Rinehart has abruptly dropped her bid to buy the abandoned tourist resort on Great Keppel Island in a blow to Queensland’s tourism industry.

Great Keppel Island in Queensland.

Gina Rinehart has abruptly dropped her bid to buy the abandoned tourist resort on Great Keppel Island in a blow to Queensland’s tourism industry.

Mrs Rinehart, Australia’s richest person, was looking to invest several billion dollars to rev­ive the defunct resort to showcase the state as a world-class tourist destination ahead of the 2032 Brisbane Olympics.

The Queensland government had been hoping a Rinehart-funded revival of Great Keppel Island would mark a new beginning for its troubled island resorts, of which at least eight are abandoned by their owners.

In a statement, GKI Investments Pty Ltd, which is owned by Mrs Rinehart’s company Hancock Prospecting, said that after an “extensive review process” involving the resort owner, government and other stakeholders, GKI “has decided that unfortunately it cannot proceed with the project”.

The Great Keppel Island resort, with its famous “Get Wrecked on Great Keppel” advertising campaign, was a household name in the 1980s. It has been closed since 2008, with owner Tower Holdings failing to find a buyer.

Mrs Rinehart’s bid for the resort lease and development approvals would have seen the construction of more than 800 luxury apartments and villas, an up-market retail precinct and a 250-berth marina on the island.

But it is understood that in its review Hancock Prospecting found the obstacles to making the resort an economically viable business were significant.

Mrs Rinehart had visited Great Keppel Island several times and was believed to be an enthusiastic backer for the concept initially.

Her withdrawal comes at a sensitive time for the Queensland government, which has been accused of mismanaging island resorts through neglect and excessive red tape.

The state government is holding an inquiry into the ability of Queensland island resorts to attract tourists and the obstacles to their success, from costs to red tape and infrastructure.

Numerous former island resorts lie abandoned including Great Keppel, Dunk Island, Hinchinbrook, Brampton, South Molle and Lindeman. Several mainland coastal resorts including the Capricorn resort in Yeppoon or Laguna Quays near Airlie Beach also lie abandoned and rotting in the sun.

Some have been ravaged by cyclones; others have been forgotten by their Chinese, Japanese or Australian leasehold owners. But the Queensland government ultimately owns the land on which these resorts lie.

 A spokesperson for Queensland’s Department of State Development said it hoped to find another potential partner to purchase the resort on Great Keppel after Mrs Rinehart’s decision.

 “The Queensland government will continue to look for investment partners to guarantee a bright future for GKI,” the spokesperson said.

“The Queensland government is committed to ensuring the most viable future for GKI which is why the State Development Department has commenced master planning to identify the community vision for the preferred future for the island. This will continue.”