Investors to bid for cattle ranches as Australia's largest private land owner up for sale

CANBERRA, Australia – An Australian company that owns cattle ranches and other land greater in area than South Korea is up for sale.

Don Manifold, a director of Ernst and Young who is managing the sale, said on Monday he expects between six and 12 bidders will lodge their offers for Australia's largest private landowner by the Tuesday deadline.

The company, S. Kidman & Co. Ltd., owns 10 cattle ranches, a bull breeding stud and a feed lot covering 101,411 square kilometers (39,155 square miles) in four states. That's an area bigger than South Korea and almost as big as the U.S. state of Virginia.

Media speculation about the price has ranged from 300 million Australian dollars ($219 million) to AU$650 million.