PLANS

Th e 154-room development, to include 110 studio and 44 duel-key apartments, is set to be open within 12 months according to its financial controller Warren Lees who added that much of the resort was being constructed in China and later shipped to Australia.

"The cell-type structures are shipped over which cuts back on development costs and completion time," he said.

WORK SO FAR

Machinery moved onto the site off Gan Gan Road roughly two weeks ago with much of the land clearing under way.

A group of Chinese investors visit the area for a site inspection on Thursday. Once completed the resort will also include a 500-seat function centre, restaurant, main bar, tennis courts, swimming pool with a bar and children's playground.

THE COMPANY

It is understood that the company China Security and Surveillance Technologies Inc. and the Chinese Development Bank are fully funding the construction of the resort which has been sold off to individual investors in a strata-type setup.

SALES

According to both Mr Lees and the group's director Caroline Wright, 100 per cent of the apartments have been sold to a combination of overseas and domestic investors. Mr Lees said Birubi Beach Resort would be different to other resorts, that sell off the plan and then go belly up, because of the affordability of the apartments and guaranteed return.

"We've sold the studio apartments from $200,000 and the duel keys for $400,000 and have offered a seven per cent return for the first three years," he said.

JOBS

Ms Wright said that while much of the assembly of the apartments is taking place in China, roughly 100 local jobs would be created in the construction phase and 150 jobs created when the resort opened.

"We're targeting the inbound market as well as the domestic market," she said.

"People are already trying to make bookings."