He may be locked in litigation in an effort to enforce an alleged deal for his €15 million purchase of Tipperary’s 751-acre Barne Estate, but billionaire horse breeder John Magnier continues to hoover up vast swathes of the so-called premier county. While others might pause to catch a breath in similar circumstances, Magnier’s Coolmore has added another 591 acres to its already-extensive Tipperrary land portfolio according to the Irish Farmers Journal.
In the first instance, Coolmore is reported to have paid €2.425 million, or almost €38,000 an acre for a 64-acre farm at Parkville on the outskirts of Clonmel. The price paid represented a premium of €1.125 million on the €1.3 million which had been sought when the farm was offered up for auction, and Coolmore secured the property in the face of competition from four other bidders.
[ How John Magnier’s Coolmore bloodstock operation is buying up Co TipperaryOpens in new window ]
Magnier’s second and more significant acquisition over recent weeks is Killough Castle and its farm. The castle, 4km from Horse and Jockey, dates from the 1400s and sits on 471 acres of tillage land, grassland and forestry with a further 56-acre outfarm bringing the entire estate to an overall area of 527 acres.
While selling agent Sherry FitzGerald had been guiding a price of €5.5 million for Killough Castle and its 471 acres with the outfarm subject to further negotiation, The Irish Times understands that Coolmore decided to acquire the entire. The price paid is understood to have been about €6.5 million. Sherry FitzGerald declined to comment. The addition of Killough Castle and Parkmore to Coolmore’s portfolio brings its land bank in Tipperary alone to about 11,000 acres.
