Oracle's Larry Ellison Buys 98% of Hawaiian Island Lanai

Ron Dahlquist | Perspectives | Getty Images

Hawaii, Lanai, aerial view of Puu Pehe, Sweetheart Rock.

Hawaii Governor Neil Abercrombie says Oracle CEO Larry Ellison has agreed to buy 98 percent of the island of Lanai.

Abercrombie said Wednesday that the land’s current owners, Castle & Cook, have filed a transfer application with the state’s public utilities commission.

Abercrombie says Ellison has had a longstanding interest in the island.

Lanai is Hawaii’s smallest publicly accessible inhabited island, with some 3,200 residents. It attracted more than 26,000 visitors from January through April this year.

Oracle is a software company based in Redwood City, Calif.