Poor bugger has also now lost the spit lease. Hard times for PB...

Poor bugger has also now lost the spit lease. Hard times for PB

• brisbane qld

Bond loses Dunk Island lease

PETER Bond has seen Linc Energy collapse, sold his luxury home at a multimillion-dollar loss and will now watch someone else take over his dream at Dunk Island Spit.
Sophie Foster
The Courier-MailAPRIL 21, 20185:30AM

Peter Bond has seen Linc Energy collapse, sold his luxury home at a multimillion-dollar loss and will now watch someone else take over his dream for the Dunk Island Spit.Source:News Corp Australia
FAILED Brisbane businessman Peter Bond just can’t seem to catch a break these days, with fresh salt rubbed into his wounds propertywise — this time involving his prized Dunk Island lease.
Fresh off a multi-million loss over the sale of his forever home in Fig Tree Pocket to Clive Palmer — the man who grew Linc Energy into a half a billion dollar listed company and then saw it collapse in 2016 — has had to endure losing yet another dream.
Bond had reached saviour status when he bought cyclone ravaged Dunk Island Resort for $7.5m in 2011, but some of that gloss has worn off after years of construction delays — which has since seen the local council decide to look elsewhere for a key sublease on the island.

The view of the Spit from Mt Kootaloo at the top peak on Dunk Island. Picture: Toni Jackson-Lee.Source:Supplied

Repairs to the Bond portion of Dunk Island have taken years to complete.Source:News Corp Australia
Listed adventure tourism firm Experience Co — which runs tandem skydiving, hot air ballooning, white water rafting, canyoning, sea kayaking, and tours to the Great Barrier Reef — was awarded the Dunk Island Spit sublease as part of a long process two years in the making that concluded late last month.
Cassowary Coast Regional Council Mayor John Kremastos said the subleases involved the camping and recreation area at the Dunk Island Spit with Experience Co to use it for commercial, recreation and tourism purposes.
“Experience Co, as an existing successful operator in the region, is well placed to not only operate a world class, eco-friendly facility at The Spit but also to invest into infrastructure on the island and provide an exciting variety of tourism activities.”
Bond, who bowed out of the Dunk Island Resort parent company in favour of his son Adam in the wake of his Linc Energy woes, has had to watch this unfold from the sidelines.

The camping area on Dunk Island Spit, off Mission Beach.Source:Supplied

Dunk Island Spit and jetty sustained heavy damage off Cyclone Yasi.Source:News Corp Australia
Experience Co told the Australian Stock Exchange that it planned to spend $3m in the next four years with initial funds expected to generate payback in two to three years.
It plans to start adventure tourism operations at the Dunk Island Spit in the second quarter of 2019, and plans to introduce a ferry service and a high-speed jet boat experience from Mission Beach.

“In addition EXP will add experiences such as sea kayaking, guided marine biologist snorkelling tours, glass bottom boat tours and indigenous guided land tours.”
Chief executive Anthony Ritter said the agreement “does not include any commitment to resort infrastructure on the island”.
Bond had initially planned to have 40 suites and 40 staff at the resort, and the Bonds also control the island’s only airstrip.