A Chinese company wanting to buy Australia's largest agricultural landholding says Australians have much to gain from foreign investment, and that the company's track record in New Zealand proves it.

Key points: Key bidder in Kidman cattle sale moves to allay concerns about foreign investment

Key bidder in Kidman cattle sale moves to allay concerns about foreign investment The Chinese company says it likes to work with local farmers and suppliers

The Chinese company says it likes to work with local farmers and suppliers It says its farms in New Zealand show the company's willingness to work with locals

Shanghai Pengxin has avoided commenting on its bid for the Kidman cattle empire, but in an interview with the ABC the company's president for overseas investment, Terry Lee, moved to allay concerns about foreign ownership.

Mr Lee said his company's acquisition of farms in New Zealand had helped the local community and agriculture sector to grow, and that the same could be done in regional Australia.

"We like to work locally with people, we want to learn local experience and local skills, we will rely on local management, local farmers, local partners and local suppliers," Mr Lee said.

"We will not bring a lot of Chinese employees to New Zealand and Australia, it is very important to use the local experience and skillsets to make a successful agriculture business."

Shanghai Pengxin is understood to be the lead foreign bidder for the S. Kidman and Co. pastoral properties, backed by its local joint venture partner, Australian Rural Capital.

Offers are believed to be in the mid-$300-million range.

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What is Shanghai Pengxin?

Shanghai Pengxin is a private Chinese company owned by billionaire property developer and businessman Zhaobai Jiang.

The company made its first major agricultural investment in the South Pacific in 2012, purchasing 16 run-down dairy farms in New Zealand's North Island for $NZ200 million.

But Shanghai Pengxin is keen to add Australia to its global agricultural portfolio.

It is understood the massive Anna Creek station has been excluded from the deal. ( ABC News: Kerry Straight )

The Kidman portfolio includes 10 cattle stations and associated properties that cover more than 100,0000 square kilometres across outback South Australia, Queensland, the Northern Territory and Western Australia.

In total it is 2.6 per cent of Australia's agricultural land.

Federal Treasurer Scott Morrison sent bidders back to the drawing board late last year saying he would block the sale of the vast Kidman cattle empire to a single foreign bidder because it would not be in the national interest.

Shanghai Pengxin is now partnering with Australian Rural Capital in its bid to buy the Kidman properties and it is understood that Anna Creek Station has been excluded from the offer.

Australia's Foreign Investment Review Board is expected to deliver its verdict on reworked offers soon.

S Kidman and Co's cattle stations are spread out over 101,000 square kilometres of central Australia. ( Supplied )

Pengxin's expanding New Zealand operations

In New Zealand, Pengxin is in a joint venture partnership with state-owned farming enterprise Landcorp.

It owns 16 dairy farms and associated buildings and Landcorp manages the farms and they split the profits or losses.

NZ's Overseas Investment Office (OIO) approved the deal on the condition that the company invest $NZ17 million in developing the farms, create at least eight jobs and a dairy training school, and that it use local milk processors.

Even so, Shanghai Pengxin faced challenges from Maori groups and New Zealand bidders.

"It took us nearly one year to get approval then three years for the court cases," Mr Lee said.

A number of local farmers objected to foreign ownership.

Paul O'Hagan was managing one of the 16 farms prior to Pengxin's successful acquisition. He said in the early stages the thought of foreign ownership made him uncertain.

"There was just this feeling that we don't know where we are going, they were an unknown entity and [we didn't know] how they were going to be to work for," he said.

"I've had to eat my words. They give me autonomy to run the farm, within guidelines, and we do our best to work together."

So far the company has invested more than $NZ20 million in the properties to upgrade infrastructure.

"We've found Shanghai Pengxin to be a good partner to work with," Landcorp chief executive Steve Carden said.

Steve Carden from Landcorp say the company is not renewing its venture with Shanghai Pengxin ( ABC News: Scott Kyle )

Nevertheless, Landcorp will not renew its joint venture next year when the contract expires.

With the crash in global dairy prices, the corporate farmer is facing a loss of $NZ9-10 million this year and is keen to invest in value-added meat and dairy products, Mr Carden said.

"From our perspective we feel as though the job is done," he said.

"We had a big job to turn around 15 very decrepit farms and we've done that successfully."

Pengxin has expanded its NZ agricultural investment to $NZ500 million, buying a majority stake in the Synlait dairy farms and milk processing operations in the South Island.

But the company was recently prevented from purchasing an $NZ88 million North Island beef and sheep station.

The sale of Lochinvar Station to Pengxin was approved by the OIO but rejected by NZ's Associate Finance Minister Paula Bennett on the grounds "the benefits to New Zealand were not substantial and identifiable".

The property was subsequently bought by a private NZ agricultural company with links to a wealthy local business family.