Media Release: Clayton Utz team advises Plenary on $1.5 billion New Footscray Hospital Project

Melbourne, 29 March 2021: Clayton Utz is proud to be a part of an important project milestone for our client, Plenary Group – the successful financial close on the $1.5 billion new Footscray Hospital, the single largest health infrastructure investment in Victoria.

The hospital is being delivered as a public-private partnership, with Western Health as the public operator of all clinical services and Plenary Health – comprising Plenary Group (sponsor, investor and asset manager), Multiplex (builder), Honeywell and Compass Group (facility services providers) and Sojitz Corporation (investor) – contracted by the Victorian Government to finance, design, construct, and maintain the hospital for 25 years following construction completion.

The new hospital will feature more than 500 beds, enabling care for almost an additional 15,000 patients and an extra 20,000 people to be seen by the emergency department each year. It will also deliver more outpatient, palliative care and mental health services ensuring the community can access quality care closer to home.

Projects and Debt Finance partner Marcus Davenport led a multi-disciplinary Clayton Utz team that worked collaboratively and seamlessly over many months alongside Plenary on the contract negotiations, equity arrangements and FIRB approvals, environment and planning, major projects and construction and property aspects, and legal due diligence.

Marcus said financial close was achieved within 24 hours of contract close, a strong result for a deal of this size.

I'm really proud of how our team – whose expertise spanned banking, environment and planning, real estate and major projects and construction – worked together to achieve this project milestone. It was a truly collaborative, cross-practice group effort.  We've worked with Plenary Group for almost 15 years now on many projects of State significance, and we're pleased they continue to place their trust in us as their legal advisers.

Core Clayton Utz team members included: special counsel Virginia Owen, senior associates Annabelle Holcombe and Vishal Devraj, and lawyers Claire McBride, Henry Matthys, Venissa Chow (Banking and Financial Services), and senior associate Kate Allison and partner Brendan Groves (Corporate).

The new Footscray Hospital is expected to open in 2025.