(Adds details and background in paragraphs 2-6) Nov 3 (Reuters)...

(Adds details and background in paragraphs 2-6)

Nov 3 (Reuters) - Australia's Mineral Resources (MinRes) (MIN) on Friday bought additional shares in lithium miner Azure Minerals (AZS) , raising its stake to 12.29%.

This comes a week after Hancock Prospecting, an iron ore miner owned by Gina Rinehart, Australia's richest person, built up an 18.3% stake in Azure.

Hancock has previously threatened to torpedo a buyout deal worth A$1.63 billion ($1.05 billion) by Chile's SQM SQMA.SN for Azure.

SQM, Azure and MinRes did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

Minres is constantly scaling up its stake in lithium miners, with the company previously buying shares worth A$158.7 million in Wildcat Resources (WC8) , bumping up its holding to 19.85%.

Emerging Australian lithium companies are seeing a surge in buyouts as their lower valuations and cash needs attract some of the world's top producers of the battery material and other suitors who are racing to secure supplies.

In October, Albemarle ALB.N , the world's top lithium chemicals maker, ditched its $4.2 billion bid for Liontown Resources (LTR) amid "growing complexities", after Hancock popped up on Liontown's register with a 19.9% stake.

($1 = 1.5528 Australian dollars)