Drive three hours north of Perth, and you'll arrive in Eneabba.

This is Western Australia mining territory - the landscape is barren and desolate, just the odd hill in the distance.

Buried in this vast terrain is a massive pit, full of what looks like mounds of worthless dirt.

But appearances can be deceiving: in fact, this pit is home to a million tonne stockpile containing critical minerals, and Australia's bet on the future.

Earlier this year, carmakers and other manufacturers around the world rushed to their war rooms, alarmed that China's tight export controls on rare earth magnets – crucial for making electric vehicles, wind turbines and defence equipment – could cripple production.