The cash-strapped Star Entertainment Group has announced it will sell The Star Sydney Event Centre and other associated premises at The Star Sydney to Foundation Theatres in a deal valued at A$60 million (US$37.5 million).

The move is designed to prevent insolvency. The operator said it had entered into an exclusivity agreement and a binding term sheet setting out the key terms of the sale of the venue, subject to the completion of detailed transaction documents and a number of customary conditions, including relevant government and regulatory approvals.

Foundation Theatres will pay an exclusivity fee of A$60 million into an escrow account no later than 31 January 2025, which will then be transferred to Star as consideration for the sale once the sale is completed.

Once the deal is completed, the amount will be held in a proceeds account set up under the terms of the group’s credit facility and will represent restricted cash, Star explained.

“The Star has worked closely with the team at Foundation Theatres since they acquired the sublease for the Sydney Lyric in 2011,” said Star Entertainment Group CEO Steve McCann. “We are pleased to partner with them as part of the continued evolution of our broad entertainment offerings at the Star Sydney.

“We continue to work on a number of other potential non-core asset transactions.”

The sale of non-core assets is seen as one of the few remaining options for Star to stay afloat, with the company itself recently admitting that the avenues through which it can raise much-needed liquidity are “limited”.

Star previously said it was almost out of cash after drawing down most of a A$100 million credit facility it took out in December, leaving it with just A$79 million in available cash as of December 31, 2024.

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