1909
VOL. 116
NO. 38
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WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 9, 2024
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PRICE $1.70 INC GST
Sensational spuds on the menu
• Chef Teresa Scott with some scrumptious fare to be served at the official launch party for the inaugural Scottsdale Spud Fest, along with fellow organisers Carmel Coote, Wayne Harper and Fiona Bennett. T READ MORE, PAGE 3.
$200m farm sales in focus BY RACHEL WILLIAMS POTENTIAL PURCHASERS are set to step foot on the soils of Tasmania’s largest farm later this week as the marketing campaign to sell Rushy Lagoon heats up. Managing Director of RMS Advisory Peter Ryan said there had already been a lot of interest in the North-East property, with a price tag of “well in excess of $100 million” expected. The property hit the market last week and adds to another significant holding being offered, with 10 per cent of Flinders Island’s total arable area also up for grabs. It is expected to fetch around $90m. Tas Farmers President Ian Sauer said it
was an interesting time for the agriculture landscape. “Hopefully the buyers develop the farms further to generate more wealth and enterprises for the area,” he said. “As they say, they are not making any more farmland, so it is a scarce resource. “I think most people are saying the market is still rising but not at the astronomical level it was.” The late Allan Pye purchased Rushy Lagoon in 1996 for $8 million. It is being marketed as a large scale irrigated and dryland cropping/grazing opportunity (21,744ha) with two contiguous properties known as Rushy Lagoon (20,523ha) and East Wyambi (1,221ha).
“There has been solid interest from parties with the capacity and financial gravitas to make the purchase,” Mr Ryan said. “It is such a diverse property it appeals to a wide range of uses and the market is telling us its value is well in excess of $100 million. “The majority of interest we have had is from organisations based on the mainland but that is not to say the money will be Australian as there are large overseas fund managers involved in agriculture globally that have representatives on the ground here now. “We are commencing inspections for interested parties later this week.” He said the structure of the sale meant
that the smaller East Wyambi property was ideal for a local purchaser. “There has been some interest from Tasmanian based farmers, so we are heartened by that,” he said. Mr Ryan said ACEN Australia, which is planning a $4 billion wind farm for the site, had not expressed an interest in purchasing the property as it was planning to lease land for its development. He would not confirm speculation that Australia’s richest woman Gina Rinehart had shown an interest. “I am not going to comment on individuals, but Mrs Rinehart has certainly been active on the mainland market this year. We are standing at the mailbox!” T CONTINUES ON PAGE 5.