S. Kidman & Co: All-Australian consortium withdraws bid for cattle empire

The all-Australian BBHO consortium has withdrawn its bid for the S Kidman and Co cattle empire, ending a bidding war with mining magnate Gina Rinehart.

The group of Australian families formally withdrew a $386 million bid after Mrs Rinehart's joint company Australian Outback Beef increased its bid by $500,000.

The BBHO consortium congratulated Mrs Rinehart's joint venture, which is 67 per cent owned by Hancock Prospecting and 33 per cent by China's Shanghai CRED.

The withdrawal came after Mrs Rinehart confirmed Hancock Prospecting was willing to buy the entire Kidman portfolio should Shanghai CRED's investment fail to be approved by the Australian and Chinese governments.

"We are disciplined investors in Australian rural assets and made what we believed to be a full and fair offer," BBHO said.

"After what has been a lengthy and complex sales process, we congratulate the Hancock Shanghai CRED consortium for similarly recognising the potential of the iconic Kidman brand."

The BBHO consortium includes South Australian Tom Brinkworth, Malcolm Harris from New South Wales and Viv Oldfield from Alice Springs.

The families have extensive land and stock holdings across Australia and planned to add Kidman's properties to the syndicate's combined herd under the Kidman brand.

"BBHO would like to acknowledge the very strong groundswell of public support it has received from well-wishers across the country, all of whom recognise the importance of the Kidman name and legacy to our industry," the statement said.

"We would also like to thank our advisors and financiers who assisted us through this process."

S. Kidman & Co prefers Rinehart bid

Australian Outback Beef's bid, which was increased by $500,000 yesterday, is preferred buy S. Kidman & Co but has not yet received approval from the Foreign Investment Approval Board.

Mrs Rinehart has confirmed Hancock Prospecting is willing to buy the entire Kidman portfolio should Shanghai CRED's investment fail to be approved by the Australian and Chinese governments.

Mrs Rinehart said the potential to acquire the Kidman business meant a great deal to her personally.

"I am from a station background, having grown up on the Mulga Downs and Hamersley stations, both in the outback," she said in a statement.

"I stand behind the bid and should the FIRB or PRC [People’s Republic of China] approvals not be achieved, then Hancock will proceed with the acquisition on a 100 per cent basis."

Opposition Leader Bill Shorten congratulated the BBHO consortium, saying they were "trying to do the best they could by Australian graziers".

"It is ultimately up to Kidman & Co who they sell that land to," he said.

"Whoever it is it will be majority Australian bid, so that's good, but I admire those who are willing to invest in the future of the cattle industry."ending a bidding war with mining magnate Gina Rinehart.

S. Kidman & Co has pastoral leases covering 101,000 square kilometres in three states and the Northern Territory, representing 2.6 per cent of Australia's agricultural land.