Northern Minerals boss sees light at the end of tunnel after multi-year losses

Government-protected rare earths company Northern Minerals has posted a $27.36m loss as it seeks taxpayer funding for its strategically vital WA project.

Northern Minerals' Browns Range heavy rare earths project.

A rare earths company in which the federal government has intervened on several occasions to shield it from Chinese investors has suffered another big loss as it seeks taxpayer funding for a long-stalled project in remote Western Australia.

Northern Minerals reported a full-year net loss of $27.4m on Friday, down from $31.6m a year earlier.

The Perth-based company controls what senior figures in successive governments have touted as a heavy rare earths project of great strategic importance. Treasurer Jim Chalmers is suing a company with links to China that allegedly defied an order to sell shares in Northern Minerals.

Northern Minerals boss Shane Hartwig is part of an Austrade-led delegation on its way to the US for a series of meetings in Washington and New York next week. Gina Rinehart-backed Arafura Rare Earths and pure play lithium producer PLS are part of the delegation.

Austrade declined to comment but earlier this month Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said he had discussed “our trade and economic relationship as well as areas for growth including critical minerals” in a phone conversion with US president Donald Trump.

Unlike Arafura and Iluka Resources in rare earths, Northern Minerals is yet to receive support from either the Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility or Export Finance Australia.

Mr Hartwig said Northern Minerals was involved in talks with both NAIF and EFA, and was on target to release by the end of the month a long-awaited definitive feasibility study on the Browns Range heavy rare earths project near Halls Creek.

He said the release of the study was crucial to advancing talks with NAIF, EFA and other potential sources of finance.

Northern Minerals managing director Shane Hartwig. Picture: Renee Nowytarger

Iluka has signalled it intends to source heavy rare earths – essential in modern weapons systems – from Northern Minerals, for processing at a refinery it is building at Eneabba with $1.65bn in support from taxpayers.

The project is part of Australia’s attempts to break China’s stranglehold on supply; Lynas Rare Earths is leading the way to date.

Mr Hartwig said there was nothing unusual about a pre-production resources company like Northern Minerals recording multi-year losses as it sought to get a mine up and running. The company has more than 8.3 billion shares on issues after spending years on the ASX as a junior exploration company.

Iluka, which this week moved to shut down a minerals sands mine and processing asset in WA, secured a foothold in Northern Minerals though a convertible note issued in October 2022.

Tom O’Leary-led Iluka has looked on as Dr Chalmers intervened three times to restrict Chinese investment in Northern Minerals and then took legal action against Indian Ocean International Shipping and Service Company. The interventions were punctuated by a cyber-attack on Northern Minerals.

To add to the dramas, Northern Minerals suffered a second strike on its remuneration report and a mystery Chinese businessman came close to securing a seat on the board at the annual general meeting last November.

Northern Minerals said in its full-year results that it may not have sufficient cash to meet its repayment obligations if the Iluka convertible note was redeemed, and that it would need to seek external funding.

Mr Hartwig said there were no cracks in the relationship with Iluka.

“The relationship with Iluka remains very strong. Both sides are committed to the development of the Browns Range project with our heavy rare earths feeding into Eneabba,” he said.