UPDATED: 2.31PM A New Zealand man is at the centre of a massive Australian drug bust.

The man, who's in his 60s, is the owner of a yacht that was found to have 1.4 tonnes of cocaine on board when it was intercepted off Sydney's coast.

Australian authorities say they recovered a street value of NZ$327 million. 

The 50 foot yacht, named the Elakha, was originally from Tauranga.

It travelled from Auckland to the Pacific, where it met a mother ship before reaching Australia.

The boat's owner has been charged and will reappear in a Sydney court next week.

Five other men have been arrested and are believed to have known each other for some time.

New Zealand authorities were involved in the bust, which was the result of a three year investigation.

Australian police say the latest seizure follows other big busts at Christmas.