This week’s property review includes this wrap-up of interesting recent listings across Western Australia and South Australia, a separate story on listings in New South Wales and Queensland, and recently completed sales.

• Arubiddy offers CPC the largest sheep station in the world
• SA’s Wattle Range Portfolio tipped to make $60m

Arubiddy offers CPC largest sheep station in the world

CONSOLIDATED Pastoral Co is being offered a chance of owning the largest contiguous sheep station in the world with the latest listing on Western Australia’s Nullarbor Plain.

The 314,494ha exclusion-fenced Arubiddy Station (pictured above) is being offered for sale after 12 years of ownership by Matthew and Claire Lewis from Lewis Hotels, one of the leading hospitality groups in Sydney.

The couple purchased Arubiddy Station from the Brown family who took over management in the early 1970s and operated it for more than five decades. Under their management the station gained a reputation for high-quality wool.

Elders agent Greg Smith is handling the expressions of interest campaign, with the first stage closing on February 25, followed by inspections. The walk-in walk-out sale includes 15,000 Merino sheep with final numbers to be determined after shearing.

While unable to provide a price guide, Mr Smith is expecting a larger buyer pool following the sale of the neighbouring 10,117sq km Rawlinna (to the west) and 711,638ha Madura Plain Stations (to the east) to CPC last year.

The Arubiddy pastoral lease sits smack bang in the middle of Rawlinna and Madura Plain Stations. It is located on the Eyre Highway, 30km north of the Cocklebiddy Roadhouse, 300km from the South Australian border and 620km from Esperance and Kalgoorlie.

It makes sense for CPC to put up its hand for Arubiddy given the operational scale and efficiencies it could achieve with three adjoining stations. If successful, CPC would own more than two million hectares of contiguous grazing country – making it again one of the largest landholders in Australia.

Crown Point Pastoral, owned by Viv Oldfield and Donny Costello, controls the biggest portfolio of agricultural land spanning more than nine million hectares, mostly in Central Australia. Gina Rinehart – with her companies Hancock Agriculture and S. Kidman & Co – manages more than 3.5 million hectares across Queensland, Western Australia, the Northern Territory and Victoria.

Madura Plain and Rawlinna Stations

In January, CPC announced it had purchased Madura Plain Station on a going concern walk-in, walk-out basis, including the sheep flock and goat herd. While no price guide was disclosed, it is understood to have transacted for around $30 million.

Madura Plains lies to the east of the largest sheep station in Western Australia, the one million hectare-plus Rawlinna, which was bought by CPC last year.

At 10,117sq km, Rawlinna is regarded as Australia’s largest sheep property, recently running around 60,000 Merinos, and with a working capacity of around 80,000 head.

Arubiddy Station

Arubiddy Station features expansive open plains of bluebush and saltbush, as well as other herbages.

Mr Smith said the Nullarbor Plain is tightly held.

“It is terrific country. Landholders have always made money because it is productive and always has feed – from fence to fence – which means stock numbers don’t fluctuate greatly.”

Mr Smith said sheep numbers on Arubiddy remain reasonably consistent.

“Rated to run 24,000DSE, it shears up to 26,000 and seldom drops below 15,000 head. The sheep are well bred and have consistently produced top quality wool, with the Arubiddy clip awarded supreme clip of the sale six times.”

Mr Smith said Arubiddy presents as an opportunity to run a reasonably large number of sheep in an easy-care environment with low input costs, with water on the northern half of the property suitable for cattle.

“The nature of the terrain on the Nullarbor makes it quite easy to muster and the lack of permanent surface water makes vermin control relatively easy.”

Arubiddy is serviced by 23 bores (13 equipped) with Farmbot monitoring on all key water points and a 3000 litre per hour or 50,000 litre per day desalination plant, supported by 250mm of annual rainfall.

Over the past 10 years, water storage capacity has been increased by 55 percent with 70 percent of the tanks replaced or upgraded in the past two years.

Infrastructure includes three homes, 10 sheep yards, a six-stand shearing shed, shearers quarters and numerous sheds and outbuildings.

Wattle Range portfolio tipped to make $60m

New Forests is offering an institutional scale investment on South Australia’s Limestone Coast region that is tipped to raise around $60 million.

The 5485ha Wattle Range Portfolio is well located, 25km west of Penola, 47km from Naracoorte and 55km from Mount Gambier.

As part of the deal, the global investment manager will retain the rights to the existing blue gum plantations through to harvest under a leaseback arrangement.

It will be responsible for undertaking remediation works from 2027 to 2030, ensuring the land is fully cleared, ploughed and transitioned to agricultural use for the incoming buyer.

Once the remediation is complete, the portfolio will comprise around 4524ha (82 percent) of productive land and 961ha (18 percent) of native vegetation and support land.

Wattle Range comprises three parcels – 2769ha Northern Aggregation, 1451ha Central Aggregation and the1265ha Southern Aggregation within a 12km radius and close to commodity processing facilities including saleyards and abattoirs.

LAWD’s Danny Thomas said the existing leases and planned remediation works made the Wattle Range Portfolio a remarkable institutional-scale opportunity.

“These arrangements ensure there is a de-risked transition to agricultural use, as well as offering long-term investment flexibility for prospective buyers.”

“Whether the portfolio is divided and purchased separately, or acquired as a whole, investors will benefit from gaining a substantial foothold in this highly productive region,” Mr Thomas said.

Across the aggregation, the land is flat to gently undulating and underpinned by the Gambier limestone formation. An extensive unconfined aquifer provides irrigation and drainage for year-round farm production.

An opportunity exists to acquire additional water rights (subject to approvals) via the Lower Limestone Coast Prescribed Wells Area, which would support potential irrigation development supported by 656mm of average annual rainfall.

The Wattle Range portfolio has benefitted from Forest Water Licences via the aquifer, but these will not be directly available as part of the sale process.

The asset is being offered for sale in-one-line or as three separate assets by expressions of interest closing on March 12. Mr Thomas and LAWD director Erica Semmens are handling the sale.