Treasury will run the ruler over new major shareholders in Northern Minerals after the China-linked fund ordered by the federal government to offload the majority of its stake sold out to Hong Kong-registered groups with almost no corporate history.

Northern Minerals is key to Labor’s plan to start a domestic critical minerals processing industry, with its Browns Range project earmarked to supply Australia’s first fully integrated rare earths refinery being built by Iluka Resources with a $1.25 billion government loan.