Mining Billionaire Rinehart Lifts Stake in Lynas Rare Earths (1)

Australian billionaire Gina Rinehart has increased her stake in Lynas Rare Earths Ltd. to 8.21% from 7.14%, adding to the iron ore magnate’s portfolio of stakes in critical mineral producers vital to the energy transition.

Rinehart bought about 10 million shares through her private company Hancock Prospecting Ltd., according to a corporate filing Friday. Lynas is one of the only rare earths producers outside China — which dominates the supply chain — with a mine and processing plant in Western Australia and a refinery in Malaysia.

Gina Rinehart in 2015.

Photographer: Carla Gottgens/Bloomberg

While Rinehart’s ultimate ambitions in the critical minerals sector remain unclear, her bets ...