A portait of Kerry Packer
© AFP/File Greg WoodSYDNEY (AFP) - James Packer, who inherited his father's media and gaming empire in December, was named by BRW magazine's Rich 200 list as the country's wealthiest person with an estimated 7.1 billion dollars (5.4 billion US).
But he was given a run for his money by Chinese-born solar energy entrepreneur Shi Zhengrong who burst onto the list at fourth place with an estimated wealth of three billion dollars.
Shopping centre magnate Frank Lowy was second followed by cardboard tycoon Richard Pratt in third.
Shi, who now lives in Wuxi in China, came to Australia in 1989 where he studied laser technology at the University of New South Wales and became an Australian citizen.
About six years ago the Chinese government offered him about six million dollars to begin solar energy manufacturing operations there, BRW Rich 200 editor James Thomson said.
In 2002 Shi established Suntech Power in China to make photovoltaic cells for use in solar panels. The company listed on the New York Stock Exchange last December with shares trading at 15 US dollars.
"It's now stabilised around 30 US dollars (per share), but his stake is worth about three billion Australian dollars," Thomson said.
The Asia-driven resources boom has also had an impact on the country's rich list, with the nation's wealthiest woman Gina Rinehart doubling her fortune to become the country's first female billionaire.
Rinehart, the daughter of the late iron ore magnate Lang Hancock, has a personal fortune of about 1.8 billion dollars and is the eighth richest person in the country.
"This is a landmark," Thomson said. "It shows that women can mix it at the top end of Australian business, and that there should be no hurdles or impediments to them doing so."
While the number of women on the list remained steady at 11, their combined value jumped from 3.8 billion dollars to 5.5 billion dollars in the previous year.
© 2006 AFP. All rights of reproduction and distribution reserved. All information displayed on this section (dispatches, photographs, logos) are protected by intellectual property rights owned by Agence France-Presse. As a consequence, you may not copy, reproduce, modify, transmit, publish, display or in any way commercially exploit any of the content of this section without the prior written consent of Agence France-Presse.