Open country on Aroona, southwest of Katherine, which was offered with about 15,000 Brahman cattle

THE Buratovich family’s Cross Pacific Investments has expanded its Northern Territory footprint with the acquisition of the well-regarded breeder block Aroona Station.

The Argentinian-owned cropping and grazing company paid $44 million for the 147,510ha holding, located at the junction of the Victoria River and Douglas-Daly regions, 90km south-west of Katherine and 400km south of Darwin.

The purchase further strengthens Cross Pacific Investments’ growing NT property portfolio which has expanded steadily in recent years through a series of large‑scale pastoral acquisitions near Katherine.

In 2021, the company paid $7.3 million for the NT’s 59,810ha Stapleton Station. Two years earlier, it paid almost $44m for almost 550,000ha of breeder country including the 67,840ha Sturt Downs ($6.8m), 101,850ha Scott Creek ($12m) and 379,000ha Manbulloo ($25m).

Aroona was sold by South Australia’s Di Giorgio family after five years ownership.

In 2021, the Di Georgios purchased the property from Hancock Agriculture and S. Kidman & Co for $41.25m on a walk-in walk-out basis including 15,400 head of mixed cattle.

This week’s $44m transaction includes more than 15,000 head of mixed-aged cattle and an extensive inventory of plant and equipment. The sale followed a two-year marketing campaign conducted by Colliers Agribusiness agents Jesse Manuel and Rawdon Briggs.

During the campaign, Mr Manuel said the well-developed breeding and backgrounding property would fit neatly into a larger supply chain operation as a value-add depot asset for young cattle.

“It also offers farming potential with the owners recently obtaining a clearing permit for nearly 4000ha,” he said.

Aroona features gently undulating red and black soil plains flats with low hills, rising country to escarpments with plateau tops, extensive alluvial channels, floodplains and basalt country typically growing blue, Mitchell grass and Tippera tall grasses.

Mr Briggs said one of Aroona’s key attributes was its accessibility.

“Occupying a prime position on the Victoria Highway, the station is close to key infrastructure assets within the live export supply chain, with its main loading yards and homestead situated 7km off the Victoria Highway.”

Situated in a 900mm average annual rainfall region, Aroona is watered by 11 equipped bores, as well as the extensive Flora River and the Haywood, Aroona and Mathison Creeks.

In recent years, the vendors have made significant capital investment in station infrastructure including fencing, yards and buildings, as well as water improvements such as refurbishing bores, installing new tanks and solar bore pumps and a telemetry system to monitor tank levels.

Other infrastructure includes a well-appointed homestead hub and four steel cattle yards.