The National Party's new federal president has rejected claims of a conflict of interest relating to a controversial coal mine proposed for northern New South Wales.

Former Howard government minister, Larry Anthony, is owner of lobbying firm SAS Group, which advocated for the Shenhua open cut coal mine on the NSW Liverpool Plains.

"Our contract terminated - came to an end - with them back in July this year," said Mr Anthony, who is also the son of Nationals icon Doug Anthony.

"We made a decision that, while they've been very good corporate citizens in the Gunnedah district, as far as I was personally concerned, my priority's now to help our party, and we won't be doing any more work for Shenhua."

Mr Anthony is listed with the SAS Group on the Federal and Queensland lobbyists registers. He's also listed as an executive director on the firm's website.

"When it comes to advocating for entities at the commonwealth or state level, I will no longer be doing that role," Mr Anthony said.

"I've made a very clear and conscious decision [about that]. I don't have any conflicts of interest."

Some Nats concerned Anthony election sends the wrong message to the electorate

While Mr Anthony has the support of some senior Nationals, including parliamentary leader and Deputy Prime Minister Warren Truss, others within the Nationals are fuming.

ABC Rural understands that some senior government ministers remain strongly opposed to Mr Anthony's election.

Another senior source likened the election of Mr Anthony to "putting Dracula in charge of the blood bank", saying that "expecting the public and members to believe that a lobbying company owner is not a lobbyist, is treating them like idiots".

One grassroots member told ABC Rural the appointment made the party look "out of touch" and that the party "could lose members, we could lose senators" in next year's federal election as a result.

But Mr Anthony said party members could be confident in the process of his election, and that his goal was now to steer the party towards the 2016 federal election.

"Sure, there'll be some people who have different views [about my election]. I think when you get to my age, you probably don't make friends with everybody," he said.

"But my goal now, and I'm very pleased even the whole federal management [goal], is to be unified now. Yes we've had some of our differences, that's healthy, that's democracy."

Anthony appointment 'a strange look': Windsor

The Shenhua mine project is slated for the Federal Agriculture Minister Barnaby Joyce's electorate of New England and Mr Joyce has been openly opposed to the project.

The controversy surrounding Mr Anthony's appointment as president has riled former federal independent MP Tony Windsor, who is still deciding whether to challenge Mr Joyce at the next election.

Mr Windsor, a former Nationals MP who's long since fallen out with the party, said Mr Anthony was entitled to his post-politics lobbying career, but his election as president is "a strange look" for the party.

And he's speculated that Mr Anthony's appointment might foreshadow the further amalgamation of the Liberal and National parties.

"Larry Anthony is there to do the job that [former Nationals leader] John Anderson couldn't do, and that's to bring the NSW Nationals into the Liberal Party tent through some sort of amalgamation, as they did in Queensland," Mr Windsor said.

But Mr Anthony is adamant amalgamation is most definitely not on his agenda.

"I think that's absolute nonsense. Absolute nonsense. Why would I want to do that?" Mr Anthony said.

"That is certainly not my intent at all. I'm a proud National and I want to serve in that capacity and ensure that we become stronger."

Mr Anthony was elected unopposed to the voluntary administrative position at the party's federal conference on the weekend.

The only other candidate, West Australian Dexter Davies, was a late withdrawal after state public service law deemed that his current job as an advisor to the WA Nationals leader would create a conflict of interest.