Construction on a $130 million hotel in the steel city of Whyalla could start within months.
Key points:
- Plans for a hydrogen hub and renewable energy projects in Whyalla will create demand for hotel beds
- The project is coupled with another hotel in Adelaide, which will be the tallest cross laminated timber structure in the world
- Construction on both is estimated to take about 12 months
Thrive Construct recently unveiled its plans to build two hotels in Whyalla and Adelaide with construction set to begin in late 2022 and early 2023 respectively.
The company’s executive chairman Barrie Harrop said Whyalla’s location, industrial base, plans for a hydrogen hub and renewable energy projects meant a hotel could make more money per room than a hotel in Adelaide.
“The [revenue per available room] is actually higher in Whyalla than in Adelaide, which shocked everyone,” he said.
He said Whyalla was probably one of the most underrated destinations in the country for an outback experience and there were significant opportunities for diving with cuttlefish over the winter period.
“We’re talking about the single largest investment in tourism infrastructure in regional South Australia,” Mr Harrop said.
The Whyalla hotel will have 164 suites as well as 49 apartments.
“That will give us about 75,000 bed nights in Whyalla which will make it pretty attractive to professional people in the mining industry, tourists and of course the professional teams coming in for these massive renewable projects in the next few years,” Mr Harrop said.
The Adelaide hotel will include 31 levels with 324 hotel rooms and 22 apartments.
Mr Harrop said it would be the tallest building manufactured from cross laminated timber.
He said the use of cross laminated timber and green steel meant the Adelaide hotel would be completely carbon neutral.