South African family buys Northern Territory's Mt McMinn Station
A South African family has bought one of the Northern Territory’s most picturesque cattle stations, Mt McMinn in the Roper River region.
The 81,000-hectare Top End outback property near Roper Bar had been listed for sale in April by the Cahill family – founders of logistics and warehousing firm Cahill Transport – with price expectations of about $7.5 million and was due to go to auction earlier this month at the Darwin Hilton.
However, the South Africans made an offer on favourable terms to acquire Mt McMinn as well as the 3000 Brahman beef cattle that brothers Michael and Dan Cahill run on the property and a deal was struck. The Cahills bought Mt McMinn from John and Kerry Mackay for $3.55 million in 2005.
The sale of Mt McMinn was negotiated by Nick Myer, Alison Ross and Paul McCormick, of Elders Real Estate, who confirmed it had sold but declined to comment on the price or reveal the identity of the buyer.
Apart from its appeal as a productive cattle station, Mt McMinn has the potential for eco-tourism given its abundant wildlife and panoramic setting. Both the Roper River and Hodgson River run through the station which has a carrying capacity for between 6000 and 8000 head of cattle
“It hasn’t just been operated as a cattle station, but also as a holiday destination for family, friends and clients,” Dan Cahill told The Australian Financial Review in April.
“We bought it at a time when water was scarce so we viewed it as a good investment. The security of water here is extremely high. I also like the aesthetics of Mt McMinn with its two rivers and beautiful escarpments,” Mr Cahill said.
Mt McMinn is close to the popular Savannah Way, the 3700-kilometre adventure driving trail linking Cairns with the pearling town of Broome in Western Australia.
“This part of Australia is just magnificent. It’s so pretty … you don’t realise it’s the last frontier of Australia,” he said.
The sale of Mt McMinn station follows an extremely strong couple of years of major cattle station sales led by Gina Rinehart’s acquisition of the Kidman & Co empire in late 2016 for $387 million and notable deals by retail billionaire Brett Blundy and others.
Earlier this month, ASX-listed Rural Funds Group beefed up its cattle farm portfolio,buying Comanche near Rockhampton for $15.7 million. Beef prices have been falling since peaking in mid-2016 but remain above historical averages and are expected to be underpinned over the long term by the global demand for protein and luxury products such as Wagyu beef.
