One of China’s top 500 companies, the conglomerate Hailiang Group which has interests across agriculture, mining, real estate, and education, has contracted to buy cattle and cropping land in southern Queensland Australia for more than $40 million.
The total purchase will encompass approximately 50,000 hectares spread across two stations – the first, the 34,000 hectare Hollymount Station owned by Traikant, the holding company of the Duddy family, which will be acquired for $31.5 million, and the second – the Mount Driven station, owned by Michael Gibbs, will be acquired for more than $10 million.
Hailiang Group is targeting operating income of 120 billion yuan (US$19.2 billion), and total assets of 70 billion yuan (US$11 billion) by the end of 2015. Hailiang Organic Farming Company, the group’s agricultural arm founded in 2011, has established plants and breeding facilities across 16 Chinese provinces, and has distribution centers in Beijing and Shanghai.
The two collective deals are scheduled to close in March 2015.
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