A South Australian pastoral family will expand their operations into the Northern Territory, after buying a Red Centre cattle station for almost $10 million.
Mt Skinner Station, about 200 kilometres north-east of Alice Springs, has left family hands for the first time in its history after being passed down through three generations of the Nelson and Barber families.
Territory Rural agent David Eagleson said the new owners planned to build on their business north of the border.
"They've got a bit of country down in South Australia," he said.
"They bought it just to continue on with their enterprise and growing what they're trying to do."
Mr Eagleson said the 596,800 hectare station was in good condition, with the Barber family running a conservative number of Poll Hereford cattle on the property.
"The cattle were included in the sale and [the station] was in very good order, very well looked after," he said.
"You're probably looking at about 2,500 or just a bit over, total cattle."
Station's long, dry spell
Mr Eagleson said the Barber family was happy with the property's sale price but he was unsure whether they planned to remain in the NT.
"They just want to keep it low key and poke along and do what they want themselves," he said.
Mr Eagleson said the property received a small amount of rain from Cyclone Trevor earlier in the year but largely it remained quite dry — like much of Central Australia.
"They have got dry feed there but like most of the stations around the district, could do with some rain," he said.
"Everyone was wishing they could have got the rain that the eastern side of the Territory got, but hopefully it's not too far away and we're one day closer."
Mt Skinner was established in 1952 by John "Jock" Nelson, a Labor MP who served in the Australian House of Representatives for 17 years before becoming an Alice Springs mayor and administrator of the NT.
