Australian hospital operator Healthscope Ltd. has approved of the for A$2 billion ($1.7 billion) offer of Carlyle Group and TPG Capital.

Healthscope Chairman Linda Nicholls said in the statement today: "The relative certainty delivered by this cash offer at a substantial premium was in the best interests of Healthscope shareholders. The new owners plan to "retain management and support management's strategy, business plans, and growth initiatives."

Healthscope shareholders will receive A$6.26 in cash for each share and should accept the bid, the company said, which is 39 percent higher than the stock price before Healthscope disclosed a takeover on May 14. Including loans, the offer values Australia's second-biggest hospital owner at about A$2.7 billion, the company statement noted.

Healthscope runs the Prince of Wales Private Hospital in Sydney. The deal grants the private-equity buyers access to the expanding Australian market for private health care. Healthscope, whose profit growth has averaged 36 percent in the past nine years. It reveals to spend more than A$240 million to expand operations adding 583 hospital beds and 24 operating theaters in the country.

Healthscope stock closed at A$5.40 on July 16. The shares have climbed 6.5 percent this year.