AMONG the first New South Wales listings for spring 2024 are 13,000ha of Liverpool Plains country across the McEvers Park and Butheroo titles, and the Riverina’s Waringah.

In South Australia, two western Eyre Peninsula cropping blocks, Herbies and Smiths, are attracting interest local and intrastate interest.

McEvers Park and Butheroo, NSW

Chinese development company Aohai Australia is offloading more than 13,000ha of prime Liverpool Plains cropping and grazing country in northern NSW.

McEvers Park

Purchased in June 2020 for $18 million, the 5351ha McEvers Park is a dryland cropping and beef production powerhouse on the Liverpool Plains near Goolhi, 23km west of Mullaley and 56km west of Gunnedah.

Comprising eight holdings, the flat to undulating topography has fertile soil types with around 2000ha arable and the balance productive grazing land.

Previously, the property cropped 1000ha and ran 1200 breeding cows and 300 replacement heifers, finishing progeny on fodder crops through to supermarket weight requirements.

The fencing is described as excellent, with water supplied by several bores and supplemented by dams and creeks underpinned by 681mm of rainfall.

Infrastructure includes four homes, three steel cattle yards, numerous sheds, a three-stand shearing shed, sheep yards and 2000 tonnes of grain storage.

Butheroo

Purchased in September 2016 for $9.5M, the 7737ha Butheroo is situated near Neilrex, 23km from Coolah and 89km from Dubbo.

Comprising five adjoining holdings, around 1100ha are arable with the balance used for beef and sheep production.

The productive soil types and gently undulating topography are underpinned by 600mm to 650mm of average annual rainfall.

Infrastructure includes a four-bedroom home, as well as five additional dwellings, two steel cattle yards, a three-stand shearing shed, sheep yards, numerous sheds and 13 silos with 550-tonnes of grain storage.

There are 50km of new fencing with partial boundary exclusion fencing, 75 dams and frontage to the Butheroo Creek.

McEvers Park and Butheroo are being offered for sale in one line or as separate properties by expressions of interest.

CBRE agents James Beer, Nick Connor, John Harrison and Thomas Quinn are handling the sale.

Waringah, NSW

In excess of $8M is being sought for a high-calibre cotton, cropping and finishing property in the southern Riverina.

Owned by Lachlan Bull, the 2004ha Waringah is located 45km north-east of Conargo, 80km from Deniliquin, and around 60km from the nearest cotton gin.

Waringah was held by members of the Bull family for around 100 years before being sold.

Around 15 years ago, Mr Bull repurchased the holding, but is now selling to allow the family to relocate south-west of Echuca.

Waringah has around 1150ha of highly fertile alluvial self-mulching and soft loam cropping country growing mostly cotton and winter cereals.

Waringah also has a proven capacity across a wide variety of winter and summer-cropping options and fodder production.

Nutrien Harcourts Deniliquin James Sides said Waringah has been superbly managed and presents to the market as one of the best purchasing opportunities ever offered in the southern Riverina.

“Boasting modern soil-management and cropping practices, it has 310ha of state-of-the-art modern lateral spray (2023) and furrow irrigation development with GPS.

“It also has 450ha of newly developed lasered bankless and pontoon layout irrigation and 390ha of dryland cultivation,” Mr Sides said.

Mr Sides said the successful purchaser can further expand the irrigation development, with extensive dryland cropping areas suitable for lateral spray or centre pivot spray irrigation.

The healthy Riverina livestock country is described as beautifully sheltered and watered and is currently running 1500 sheep and 40 head of cattle.

Situated in a 375mm rainfall, there are two irrigation bores with 40ML of combined daily extraction.

Infrastructure includes numerous sheds, cattle yards, three 55t grain silos and extensive new fencing throughout, including exclusion fencing.

There is development application approval for 11 wind turbines (contracted to a major energy supplier) with scope to generate a substantial passive income with a proposed starting date in 2027.

Waringah is being offered for sale by offers to purchase closing on October 4.

Herbies and Smiths, SA

There has been solid interest in two cropping blocks on the far west coast of South Australia’s Eyre Peninsula, owned by Daryl and Rahmawati Rogers.

Located 24km from Ceduna, the 1075ha Herbies and the 766ha Smiths are 3km apart and are available as a whole or as two non-contingent lots.

Nutrien Harcourts agent Bill Sargent said enquiry is coming from locals and farmers from the Lower Eyre and Fleurieu peninsulas seeking expansion or an investment leasing opportunity.

While he was unable to give a price guide, the lease value of the country is in excess of $400/ac.

Situated in a 294mm average rainfall region, the undulating land has red and brown sandy loams suited to cereal cropping and grazing.

SA Water supplies both blocks via the Wandana water scheme.

The 1075ha Herbies has around 910 arable hectares which are typically cropped on the basis of three years in, one year out.

The average yield is estimated as 1-1.2t/ha of wheat.

Infrastructure includes an old house, two sheds and an old shearing shed.

The 766ha Smiths has 352 arable hectares that yield on average 800kg-1t/ha of wheat.

The only infrastructure on the block is a 10,000-gallon concrete tank.

Both blocks are leased but this expires after this season’s crop is harvested.

Registrations of interest for Herbies and Smiths close on October 17.

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