Lindsay Fox to take Kidman decision on the chin

Lindsay Fox says he will ‘accept the umpire’s decision’ after the Kidmans chose to sell 80 per cent of their company.

Jerry's Girls opening night. Rosie Lew with Lindsay and Paula Fox. Picture: Julie Kiriacoudis

Trucking magnate Lindsay Fox says he will “accept the umpire’s decision’’ after the Kidman family chose to sell 80 per cent of its company to two Chinese companies, but has reiterated that he would prefer to see Australian assets remain in Australian hands.

The Kidman family agreed on Tuesday to a proposal by China’s Dakang Australia Holdings to buy 80 per cent of S. Kidman and Co with Australian Rural Capital Ltd to take the remainder, subject to approval by the Foreign Investment Review Board.

Scott Morrison confirmed yesterday that he had signed an interim order preventing the sale of Kidman for 90 days and ­ordered an independent review into the deal. The Treasurer said he needed to be “absolutely confident” that Australians had been given every ­opportunity to participate in the tender process.

In February, Mr Fox’s Linfox made a late bid to keep Australia’s largest outback cattle empire in local hands, writing to Mr Morris­on flagging its interest in buying the properties. It was subsequently given access to Kidman’s financial data by Kidman’s advisers.

But Mr Fox suggested yesterday that the sale price of $371 million was well over what Linfox was prepared to pay. “I am not going to pay more for something than I think it is worth,’’ he said.

“I have always accepted the umpire’s decision. Whatever will be, will be ... whatever FIRB has to do, they will do.”

Asked if he would have preferred Kidman to have remained in Australian hands, he replied: “I think that Australian assets having­ Australian owners is very important. But at the end of a day, if I have an asset, I would expect to be able to sell it to anyone.

“How can you restrict someone from making a profit by selling something?’’ Linfox would adopt a wait-and-see approach.

It is understood that if FIRB rules against the revised Dakang/ARC deal on national-interest grounds, Linfox would be prepare­d to reconsider a bid given the price tag would likely drop.

Troy Setter, the chief executive of the ­nation’s biggest privately owned cattle company Consolidated Pastoral, expressed his frustration at another­ delay to the Kidman sale process at The Australian and Visy’s annual Global Food Forum in Melbourne yesterday.

“It was at the food forum this time last year that we were talking about Kidman and, you know, the deal is still not done,’’ he said.

“It’s a long time and that capit­al has got to be pretty patient to be approved and sit there and go through all of the due diligence and go through all of the processes to then have multiple government challenges put in front of them and with not very clear rules.

“So we had three senior members of parliament here today sort of saying ‘Australia is open for business’. “And then we see the Treasurer turn around today and say, ‘I’m going to put another revie­w in and I’m going to kick it along ­before the election’.’’

He said Australia could not ­afford to make it hard for foreign capital to come into the country.