Gold Coast Bulletin, October 11th, 2008

THE Raptis Group yesterday confirmed it was negotiating with Brookfield Multiplex over a possible tie-up on its Hilton Surfers Paradise project.

In a brief statement to the Australian Securities Exchange, the listed Gold Coast developer said discussions with Brookfield Multiplex were ‘ongoing’ and ‘no agreement has been concluded’.

The ASX statement came in res-ponse to a report yesterday in The Gold Coast Bulletin which exclusively revealed Multiplex to be a possible buyer or joint-venture partner for the $700 million Hilton project, which is being undertaken on the site of the former Dolphin Arcade.

Neither Raptis Group nor Brookfield Multiplex would comment on the negotiations, but sources said they were close to finalisation.

“We confirm that we will inform the market once there is a binding agreement,” said Raptis Group.

Brookfield Multiplex is controlled by Canadian investment powerhouse Brookfield Asset Management, which last year privatised listed builder Multiplex in a $4.2 billion takeover.

Raptis has been seeking a joint-venture partner for the Hilton Surfers Paradise project after putting all its Gold Coast assets on the market in a bid to reduce its $750 million debt.

Sources said Brookfield Multiplex was a potential outright purchaser of the Hilton, but the Raptis announcement yesterday said Multiplex intended to take ‘a role in the project’.