Six people were arrested and a significant amount of cocaine seized following a trans-Tasman investigation.

New Zealand Customs intelligence has led to the largest seizure of cocaine in Australia's history.

The Australian Federal Police said more than 1.4 tonnes of cocaine with a street value of about $312 million had been seized.

Six people, including a New Zealander, were arrested in the bust, which was the culmination of a police operation that spanned more than two years.

The investigation began with a tip-off from New Zealand Customs, according to a statement from the AFP.

The drugs were meant for Australia and none of the shipment entered New Zealand, a customs spokeswoman confirmed.

The long-running investigation involved Customs, the Organised Financial Crime Agency of New Zealand, the Fijian Transnational Crime Unit, French Polynesian

SUPPLIED Police and Customs from Australia and New Zealand seized a shipment of cocaine.

Authorities and the Australian Border Force.

Six men, aged between 32 and 66, have been charged with serious drug importation offences.

The investigation began in August 2014 when the Australian Federal Police were alerted by New Zealand Customs about a scheme to import the drugs into Australia.

Police allege a yacht, the Elakha, travelled from New Zealand to a "mothership" in the South Pacific Ocean last month to collect the drugs.

Shortly before midnight on Thursday, the HMAS Bathurst intercepted the Elakha and the two crew members, a 63-year-old New Zealand man and a 54-year-old dual

Swiss/Fijian national, were detained.

SUPPLIED The investigation spanned two and a half years.

Black bags containing a large quantity of blocks which tested positive for cocaine were discovered on the vessel.

Further forensic testing will be conducted to determine exact weight and purity.

On Friday, two Sydney men – aged 63 and 62 – travelled to the NSW south coast, where they met a 66-year-old man.

Six arrests have been made as a result of the operation

Police say the three men intended to launch a motor vessel to meet the Elakha at sea before returning to shore with the drugs.

The AFP arrested and charged the three men with conspiracy to import a commercial quantity of a border-controlled drug.

They appeared in Nowra Local Court on Saturday and were refused bail. They will reappear in court on Wednesday.

AUSTRALIAN FEDERAL POLICE The more than 1.4 tonnes of cocaine has a street value of about NZ$326.1 million.

On Friday police also arrested a fourth man in Sydney who is also alleged to be involved in the conspiracy to import the cocaine.

New Zealand Customs spokesman Jamie Bamford said the seizure was the culmination of a three-year investigation by New Zealand Customs into the activities of the Elakha and its crew.

"Intelligence obtained by Customs was shared with the Australian Federal Police and Australian Border Force and this seizure is testament to the strong partnerships and co-operation between New Zealand, Australia and Pacific nations focused on combating drug smuggling operations in the region," Bamford said.

In a press conference in Australia, officials called the bust a "hammer blow for the organisations that peddle in drugs".

Video released by Customs shows the Australian Federal Police leading men away from a yacht in handcuffs.

Large bags of evidence are shown to be bagged up and taken away in trucks.