ONE of Australia’s largest grain operations, comprising a total of about 68,000 hectares (168,030 acres), has been listed for sale in Western Australia and both domestic and international interest is already very strong.
The State’s largest grain grower, John Nicoletti, has listed five properties for sale, which together has about 47,000ha (about 116,140ac) of arable land.
In addition, he also has a substantial grain storage facility up for sale in the offering.
The properties are situated in the Eastern Wheatbelt, while one, “Daisy Downs” is located near Mullewa in the Northern Wheatbelt.
They are listed for sale with Danny Thomas, Phil Melville, Duncan McCulloch and James Beer of CBRE.
Mr Thomas, who is the CBRE Agribusiness regional director, said early interest had been encouraging and that had come from a range of potential buyers including private equity groups, hedge funds, corporates and serious grain growers.
“We have been inundated with people who have said they want to hear all about it – both domestic and foreign,” Mr Thomas said.
“It has been a really diverse group who have made enquiries.”
The offering comprises the 21,948ha Walgoolan Aggregation, the 7305ha Bullfinch Aggregation, the 6523ha Moorine Rock Aggregation, the 4534ha “Lakeview”, the 27,538ha “Daisy Downs”, and the Merredin Silos, which offers 15,000 tonnes of grain storage on a 2ha property.
Mr Thomas cited sheer scale as a major appealing feature.
“In a good year, you can produce between 70,000 tonnes and 100,000t of commodity – that’s a real drawcard for somebody who wants a strategic place in WA grain growing.”
The properties have been listed for sale by expressions of interest, with a closing date yet to be determined, and a number of sale options are possible.
These include a walk-in walk-out option, vacant possession, or sale and leaseback to the Nicoletti Group.
Mr Thomas said it was rare to see cropping land of this size hitting the property market.
“Wheat, which is the primary focus of the Nicoletti Group, is by far the largest export grain, and these properties are well-positioned to capitalise on anticipated increases in demand from key export destinations, particularly Asia and the Middle East.”