A $30 million purchase of a Tasmanian grazing, cropping and native forest enterprise heads up this week’s list of properties sold recently.

 Local family pays $30m for Tasmania’s Mineral Banks

 New England’s Naloo makes around $13.8m

 Tamworth’s historic Dungowan Station makes around $8m

 Dorper breeder expands in NSW’s far north-west

Local family pays $30m for Tasmania’s Mineral Banks

A LOCAL family farming group is believed to have paid around $30 million for Mineral Banks in Tasmania’s north-east.

The 1236ha grazing, cropping and native forest opportunity, 25km from Scottsdale and 58km from Launceston, was offered for sale by the Foster family after more than 90 years of ownership.

Agents from Colliers Agribusiness were unable to disclose the buyer or the price paid but during the marketing campaign, Mineral Banks was anticipated to make more than $30m.

Around 781ha of the property had been developed for grazing, with the rich red loam and alluvial soils growing improved pastures and supporting beef cattle and fat lamb production.

Around 55ha had been set aside for intensive cropping and there are 400ha of native forest.

Mineral Banks offers the incoming purchaser the ability to capitalise on higher value farming operations including dairying, further intensive cropping and development of irrigation infrastructure for fattening operations.

Significant volumes of hardwood timber in the native forest offer diversified forestry opportunities and potential for biodiversity stewardship and carbon farming.

Mineral Banks boasts extensive river frontage with the Dorset River and New River traversing the property supported by 1200mm of annual rainfall. It also benefits from 420ML of irrigation water from the Upper Ringarooma scheme.

Infrastructure includes multiple homes, numerous sheds, three cattle yards and a three-stand shearing shed, as well as recently upgraded fencing and internal laneways.

The sale was handled by Colliers Agribusiness agents Duncan McCulloch, Connor Dixon and Rawdon Briggs.

New England’s Naloo makes around $13.8m

NEW England breeding and finishing country has sold to a local producer for expansion and to compliment his existing enterprise.

The 1319ha Naloo was owned by Rockvale Estates since 2013 and is located 34km from Guyra and 38km from Armidale, in the high rainfall region of northern New South Wales.

LAWD agent Michael Corcoran was unable to disclose the buyer or the price paid; however; during the marketing campaign Naloo was listed for $13.8million ($10,462/ha) or $985/DSE (bare).

Naloos has a 14,020DSE carrying capacity on the country that rises from creek flats to undulating and open land lightly timbered with yellow box, gum and stringy bark.

Around 95 percent of the New England trap and granite soils are arable and grow improved and native pastures.

Naloo sits at the headwaters of the Chandler River and is watered by two bores and 17 dams.

Infrastructure includes steel cattle yards, sheep yards and a three-stand shearing shed. There are 9km of new or upgraded internal fences and more than 6km of new exclusion fencing.

Rockvale’s other New England property, the nearby Alora-Mia spanning 1686ha is still listed at $14.8 million.

Tamworth’s historic Dungowan Station makes around $8m

A FAMILY operator from Cootamundra has paid around $8 million to relocate to the historic Dungowan Station in northern New South Wales.

The 1612ha property 33km east of Tamworth was settled in 1834, ande is regarded as a powerhouse of cash producing assets, including breeding and backgrounding cattle.

It is considered among the region’s most prestigious and unique properties, sitting alongside the larger Bective and Goonoo Goonoo Stations.

The blue ribbon, mixed farming and grazing property also generates a guaranteed income from a brewery, a 150-seat function centre and three-bedroom cottage which are leased to hospitality operator, the CH Group.

During their ownership, Campbell and Naree McIntosh (who are builders and developers by trade) invested heavily into improving and upgrading Dungowan Station, including quality fencing and first-class water infrastructure.

Water is secured by 2km of double frontage to the permanent and picturesque Dungowan Creek, as well as numerous dams and bores.

Two water licences are offered with the sale – 82ML of unregulated river and 480ML of continuing aquifer running three centre pivots, with planning and infrastructure for a fourth pivot to increase production.

The fertile alluvial and highly productive river flats are growing hay, lucerne and summer and winter cereal crops for finishing livestock.

The balance is open valley country set in undulating grazing hills rising to mountain ranges and capable of running up to 350 cows and calves.

Infrastructure includes a four-bedroom (circa 1903) home, two steel cattle yards and numerous sheds.

Davidson Cameron & Co agent Simon Burke and Burke & Smyth Commercial agent Gavin Knee handled the sale.

Dorper breeder expands in NSW’s far north-west

A LOCAL Dorper breeder has paid $2.66 million bare ($160/ha or $65/ac) to expand with Mulga Valley Station in New South Wales’ far north-west.

The 16,576 ha property offered by Paul and Jane Martin is located near Broughams Gate, 120km from Broken Hill, west of the Barrier Ranges and east of the South Australian border fence.

Broken Hill-based Nutrien Harcourts agent Troy Hartman described the sale as reasonable given the dry seasonal conditions and the property’s minimal infrastructure.

During their ownership, the Martins improved the fencing and livestock handling facilities creating an easily managed dorper breeding enterprise.

Mulga Valley has a diverse mix of native pastures, including Mitchell grass and salt bush, covering undulating sandy rises and box swamps along localised flood out areas.

Water is provided by three bores (two equipped), a substantial dam and numerous tanks.