Australia orders Chinese investors to sell down stake in rare earths miner

Australian Treasurer Jim Chalmers has ordered several China-linked investors to dispose of shares in rare earths miner Northern Minerals on national interest grounds, a spokesperson said on Monday.

Northern Minerals is developing the Browns Range heavy rare earths project in Western Australia, at a time when the sector has become increasingly strategic for its uses in green energy and defence.

A disposal order issued by Chalmers on Sunday said Yuxiao Fund had 60 days to dispose of 80 million shares it bought in September. Yuxiao Fund is the Singapore-registered private investment vehicle of Chinese national Wu Yuxiao, Reuters has previously reported.

The fund had sought Foreign Investment Review Board (FIRB) approval to raise its ownership to 19.9% in 2022, from 9.81% of Northern Minerals, but was declined last year.

Northern Minerals Chairman Adam Handley in a statement to Reuters said that it had referred certain share buying activity to the FIRB to investigate last October.

Source: MINNING.COM