The state government has confirmed it will sell half its stake in rail freight business Aurizon, formerly known as QR National, in a deal worth $806 million.
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Treasurer Tim Nicholls said the proceeds from the sale would be used to pay down state debt.
The Queensland government sold off $1.5 billion worth of QR National shares, reducing its stake from 34 per cent to 16 per cent, only five months ago.
Mr Nicholls said at the time that there were no ''current intentions'' to sell any of the remaining shares in the ''near term''.
But on completion of the latest sale, the government's holding in Aurizon will fall from 18.2 per cent to 8.9 per cent, effectively halving its stake again.
Aurizon - the coal and bulk freight rail haulage business - was one of the key planks of the Bligh government's controversial asset sales program that contributed to the end of 14 years of Labor rule in Queensland at the March 2012 election.
When QR National was floated on the stock exchange in 2010, the government maintained about a third of the shares.
Both Labor and the Liberal National Party signalled before last year's election that they would reduce the QR National stake, but the ALP opposition now criticises the move.
Premier Campbell Newman promised during the campaign not to pursue privatisation of other assets without an electoral mandate, but he did say an LNP government would look to sell down the QR National stake when maximum returns could be achieved.
Mr Nicholls maintained the LNP was still opposed to the original decision but would use the funds from selling down the government's stake to reduce ballooning state debt.
''The LNP opposed the former Labor government's decision to sell QR National, however we now have an obligation to Queenslanders to achieve the best possible outcome from the situation we inherited,'' he said in a statement last October.
Mr Nicholls said the Queensland government would continue to be a ''significant'' shareholder.
The government said the deal involved the sale of 200 million shares in Aurizon to institutional and sophisticated investors in Australia and offshore.
The shares have been sold at $4.03 a share and the government will also receive a 4.1¢-a-share dividend from Aurizon on the shares that have been sold, which is payable on March 27, Mr Nicholls said.
Proceeds from the sale are expected to be received on March 21.
