SETTLEMENT has been finalised for four Western Australian Kimberley district cattle properties comprising the SAWA aggregation, which have sold for $100 million in what is likely to be the state’s biggest ever cattle land deal.

The property portfolio, together with about 47,000 cattle, has been sold to investment group, Consolidated Australian Pastoral Holdings.

Beef Central first broke the news of the $100m SAWA aggregation deal in this article published back in April.

CAPH is a partly foreign-owned company with a Chinese component, meaning the deal had to go before the Foreign Investment Review Board for approval.

Breeder muster on Moola Bulla

The four properties involved, totalling just over one million hectares in size, include Moola Bulla (395,000ha) near Halls Creek, Mount Amhurst (260,000ha) near Halls Creek, Beefwood Park (206,000ha) near Fitzroy Crossing and Shamrock Station (178,000ha) near Broome.

Sole marketing agent Sue Brosnan from Tanami Rural said it was a significant sale for the northern cattle industry.

Beef Central’s research back in April suggested the deal was the largest ever struck for cattle operations in the Kimberley region, and may have been the state’s largest such transaction.

“My understanding is CAPH intends to continue the pastoral enterprise on these properties and look at improving the enterprise and growing the capacity of the aggregation to produce good quality cattle,” Ms Brosnan told ABC earlier today.

The location of the properties created a natural geographic supply chain into the region’s two main live export departure points, Broome and Wyndham, she told Beef Central.

The acquisition of the Kimberley assets signals the emergence of a new player in the industry.  Adelaide-based advisory firm, Agrify, has led the establishment of the CAPH investment group, which has been seeded by international equity from China.

Further investments likely

A spokesman for Agrify said the group intended to explore further agricultural acquisitions following the completion of the SAWA purchase.

The offering of the SAWA aggregation to the market was first reported on Beef Central on February 1.

Regarded as the largest parcel of northern grazing land to publicly go on the market since the S.Kidman empire was listed in April last year, the SAWA aggregation was sold by Nico Botha and family. The Botha family has been associated with Moola Bulla since 1999, and has gradually built its  Kimberley land holdings to the current aggregation.

Ms Brosnan said key features in the SAWA deal were the number of stock included; the potential for further production growth offered by the aggregation; and the quality of the predominantly Red Brahman x Droughtmaster commercial herd.

The Botha family said they were pleased to be able to hand the aggregation on to purchasers who would appreciate the quality of the investment and the opportunity to continue to develop the potential of the properties.