Listed Ryman Healthcare, which is building an $18 million retirement village in Dunedin, has announced plans to establish its first village in Australia.
It has 21 villages in New Zealand, combining retirement living and rest-home care for 5000 people, with 2500 staff.
The the three-storey Dunedin facility will have 122 rooms, with dementia-care, rest-home and assisted living suites.
It is expected to take its first residents in March next year.
Ryman shares remained steady at $2.04 after the announcement yesterday.
At its annual meeting of shareholders in Orewa, north of Auckland, yesterday, Ryman chairman Dr David Kerr said the company was actively seeking its first Australian site, having studied the market for several years and saw it as "the next logical step in the growth" of Ryman.
In May, Ryman posted a 16% increase in after-tax profit to a record $61 million for the year, a rise matched in shareholder dividend payments.
Dr Kerr said yesterday the company was on track to achieve its medium-term target of 15% growth in realised profits for the full year.
