Australia has ordered a sweeping security review of its critical infrastructure and is drawing up a register of key assets to help regulators assess whether any privatisation or sale to overseas investors would raise national security concerns.
The initiative, unveiled on Monday, was prompted by concerns about an increased risk of “sabotage, espionage and coercion” involving key water, energy and port facilities amid a surge in foreign investment from China.
It follows controversy sparked by the lease of Darwin port to a Chinese company in 2015 and Canberra’s decision last year to block two A$10bn-plus foreign bids for the electricity company Ausgrid on national security grounds.