Wound up co-location investors lose out
St James's Hospital in Dublin where Synchrony Healthcare had a contract with the HSE and planning permission to develop a 196-bed facility. The scheme was backed by Niall McFadden's Boundary Capital
THE company that won the contract for one of the first planned 'co-location' hospitals in Dublin is set to be wound up after a meeting in the capital today.
Synchrony Healthcare secured planning permission and a contract with the HSE to build a 196-bed facility on the grounds of St James's Hospital in Dublin.
The sod was never turned on the project however and it has now been scrapped.
The co-location project was launched by then Health Minister Mary Harney in 2005. She planned to hand land at state-controlled hospitals to private-sector companies to develop in an effort to increase the supply of private beds.
Six projects, including the St James's scheme, came close to launch before the entire scheme was scrapped under the current Government.
With no property acquisition costs and no building work done the main losses will be borne by investors in the scheme.
These included Boundary Capital, now known as Fleming Capital.
The most recent accounts shows a shareholder deficit of close to €400,000 at Synchrony Healthcare.
The company had debts of just over €1m at the end of 2010, the accounts show.
Investors in Synchrony are the latest to be left nursing losses as a result of the co-location scheme.
Last year, US investor UPMC pulled out of its €600m plan to develop private 'co-location' hospitals in Limerick, Cork and at Beaumont in Dublin, in partnership with the Beacon Medical Group.
Beacon Medical said €30m had been spent over five years on the stalled projects.
- Donal O'Donovan
Irish Independent
