Lime quarry for sale

THE ONLY lime-producing quarry in the North Island is selling as a going concern for $1.75 million.

Brown’s Lime Quarry, near Dannevirke, has been servicing dairying and sheep and beef farms in Hawke’s Bay, Wairarapa, Manawatu, Rangitikei and Wanganui since 1994.

The 12.8-hectare open cast lime pit produces two grades of crop and pasture enhancing fine lime for aerial and ground spreading, and coarser lime gravel for use in cattle races and roading.

The southern Hawke’s Bay quarry’s parent company runs a vertically-integrated business: quarrying and extracting the lime, crushing and drying it to varying granular sizes, and marketing the finished product under the consumer label Brown’s Quality Lime.

Brown’s Quality Lime premiumgrade lime wholesales for $31 a tonne compared to $25 a tonne for standard-grade lime; course racegrade lime rock wholesales for $16 a tonne, and large rocks and boulders commonly used for landscaping and soil retaining purposes wholesale for $52 a tonne.

The fully consented freehold quarry land, crushing/drying plant and heavy quarrying machinery, and retail business are included in the sale.

The company also leases bulk lime storage facilities in Dannevirke and Wanganui.

Rodger Howie, of Bayleys Napier, says the practice of lime application had grown substantially in the past 10 years, with dairy and meat farms seeking more environmentally friendly ways of growing grass and managing pasture.

‘‘Brown’s Quarry is estimated by mining analyst company Arcadia Resources Limited to contain between five and seven million tonnes of lime.

‘‘The highest annual lime production from the quarry in the past 20 years has been 35,000 tonnes, so there is still plenty of rock which is prime for excavation, crushing and direct sales to the consumer.

‘‘It’s unlikely this quarry will run out of lime in the foreseeable future as the existing face and cuttings are exposing substantial depth and width of commercial high-grade lime.

‘‘Brown’s Lime Quarry has a distinct market advantage, being the only lime producing quarry in the North Island which uses a drying plant in the processing. This process makes its lime the most even-spreading and free flowing lime on the market.

‘‘Customers, who are predominantly farmers, phone in their orders directly through to the quarry operators for processing and delivery.

‘‘The company has a database of some 300 customers, with some 25 per cent rated as ‘regulars.’’’

Howie likens the lime production rate of up to 70 tonnes an hour to a small business model, employing the owner and two fulltime staff.

‘‘With existing open cast excavation infrastructure and faces in place, and room for the addition of more plant and machinery, there is considerable potential to bolster output levels.’’

Howie says lime neutralises the acidification caused by nitrogen fixation, nitrate leaching and photosynthesis; the more intensively land is farmed, the greater the rate of acidification (which higher rainfall can accelerate).

‘‘With numerous drought and near-drought scenarios impacting on lower North Island regions over the past decade, water retention in soil has become ever more critical for farmers, and is one of the reasons why Brown’s Lime Quarry has prospered.

‘‘Use of lime can improve the absorption of rainfall into soil. This can be particularly important on dry hill country with the rain absorbing into the soil faster rather than running off the surface.’’

Howie says Brown’s Quarry had the benefit of being surrounded by sheep and beef grazing land, ‘‘so any move to increase production output would have minimal environmental impact.’’

For more information, contact Rodger Howie on 027 431 1973 or at rodger.howie@bayleys.co.nz.