Napier Downs
| Company type | Pastoral lease |
|---|---|
| Industry | Cattle station |
| Founded | Early 1880s |
| Founder | M. C. Davies |
| Headquarters | Kimberley , Australia |
Area served | Kimberley region, Western Australia |
| Products | Red Brahman cattle |
| Owner | Kerry Stokes (since 2015) |
Napier Downs Station, often referred to simply as Napier Downs, is a pastoral lease functioning as a cattle station situated within the Kimberley area of Western Australia.
The property lies approximately eastward from Derby and northwest of Fitzroy Crossing, with access provided by the Gibb River Road. Its landscape predominantly consists of black soil plains intersected by the rugged ridges of the Napier Range. These plains represent savannah terrain, featuring multiple gorges nestled among the ridges towards the southern section.
Stocked with around 20,000 head of Red Brahman cattle, the station was purchased in 2015 by entrepreneur Kerry Stokes from Peter Leutenegger for an estimated price between AUD 23 and 40 million. Leutenegger, who had been active in the area since 1980 as a former helicopter pilot, had owned Napier Downs since 1992. His acquisition followed the extensive destocking across the Kimberley region during the 1980s, a consequence of the Brucellosis and Tuberculosis Eradication campaign.
Originally established in the early 1880s by M. C. Davies alongside the Kimberley Pastoral Company—which also managed the adjacent Kimberley Downs Station—Napier Downs spanned and supported a herd of 9,000 cattle by 1910 under Davies' proprietorship.
The station endured a harsh drought in 1953, receiving merely of rainfall compared to its average , which led to considerable livestock losses due to scorched pasture.
In 1988, Napier Downs' homestead was utilized as a base camp by a scientific team from the Royal Geographical Society and the Linnaean Society. This expedition involved 30 researchers conducting studies within the Napier Range.