Freighter & Mining Station Guide: Automate Remote Mining

Do not start building freighter infrastructure until you have these running:

Research order recommendation:

1. Basic Logistics (unlocks pipes and connectors)
2. Mining Expansion (unlocks remote miners)
3. Freighter Logistics (unlocks Freighter Dock)
4. Freighter Mk2 (faster ships, larger cargo)

Skip nothing in this chain. Each tier builds on the last.

A Freighter Dock is a two-way building. It both sends and receives ships. Think of it as an airport, not a post office.

The Loop

Freighter ship travel cycle from main station dock to mining outpost and back

Each ship in your fleet follows this loop automatically. You do not assign routes. You do not schedule departures. The dock handles everything — as long as you set it up correctly.

Cargo Flow Direction

This is where most players mess up. The Freighter Dock has two container connections:

• Import Container: Where the dock drops off incoming goods
• Export Container: Where the dock picks up goods to send out

At your main station:

• Import = receives ore from the outpost (connect this to your smelter input)
• Export = sends supplies to the outpost (fuel, building materials, etc.)

At your mining outpost:

• Import = receives supplies from the main station
• Export = sends ore back to the main station (connect this to your miner output)

Ship Capacity and Speed

For your first mining outpost, a Small Freighter is enough. You can always upgrade later.

Step 1: Find a Mining Spot

Open your star map and look for asteroids with resource icons. Fly there in your personal ship and scan the asteroid. You want:

• High-density ore (shows as bright spots on the scanner)
• No enemy spawns nearby (check for red zones)
• Within 2 sectors of your main station (shorter freighter trips = faster throughput)

Step 2: Build the Outpost

Land on the asteroid and place these buildings in this order:

1. Solar Panels (4-6) — power first, always
2. Miner — on the ore vein
3. Storage Container — next to the miner
4. Freighter Dock — as close to the storage container as possible
5. Connector — from Miner → Storage Container
6. Connector — from Storage Container → Freighter Dock (Export side)

Step 3: Connect the Docks

Go back to your main station. Build a Freighter Dock there. Now open the dock’s interface at your main station and select “Connect to Remote Dock.” Pick your mining outpost from the list.

The two docks are now linked.

Step 4: Build and Assign a Freighter

Open your Shipyard. Build a Small Freighter. Once complete, go to your main station’s Freighter Dock interface and assign the ship to the route.

The freighter launches immediately. It will:

1. Fly to the outpost
2. Pick up whatever is in the Export container
3. Fly back
4. Drop it in the Import container
5. Loop forever

Step 5: Verify the Flow

Watch one full cycle. Check:

• Miner is producing ore (check the miner’s output)
• Ore is flowing into the Storage Container (check the container)
• Ore is in the Export side of the Freighter Dock (check the dock)
• Freighter arrives at main station with ore in cargo (check Import container)

If any of these fail, trace backwards from the problem point.

Once you hit Station Level 8, one mining outpost is not enough. You need multiple planets feeding your factory simultaneously. Here is how to set it up without creating a logistical nightmare.

The Hub-and-Spoke Model

Multi-planet wormhole chain routing through intermediate stations to the main hub

Your main station is the hub. Every mining outpost is a spoke. Freighters fly directly between each outpost and the main station. Do not try to create outpost-to-outpost routes — it complicates everything and doubles your transit time.

How Many Freighters Per Route?

Rule of thumb: If your Export container at the outpost is more than 75% full, add another freighter.

Wormhole Integration

Once you unlock Wormhole Generators, you can skip freighters entirely for planets that have a wormhole connection. Wormholes sync inventories instantly — no ship travel time needed.

But freighters still have a role: for planets too far for wormholes, or for moving items that you do not want cluttering your wormhole-linked storage.

Freighter Flies But Delivers Nothing

Cause: Export/Import containers are swapped, or the miner is not connected to the Export container.

Fix: Check the cargo flow direction. At the outpost, the miner’s output must feed into the Export side of the dock.

Freighter Gets Stuck or Disappears

Cause: Power failure at either dock mid-transit. Ships need power at both ends to complete their route.

Fix: Add battery backups at both docks. Even a single Battery Bank can keep the dock alive long enough to receive a ship during a brief power dip.

Outpost Runs Out of Power

Cause: Solar panels are not enough if the outpost is in shadow, or you added too many miners.

Fix: Replace solar with a Small Reactor at the outpost. The reactor runs on basic fuel and is more reliable than solar for remote sites.

Freighter Takes Too Long

Cause: The outpost is too many sectors away, or you are using a Large Freighter (slow) for a short route.

Fix: Use Small Freighters for nearby outposts. Reserve Large Freighters for cross-planet bulk hauls. Or build a Wormhole connection instead (see our Wormhole Terminal Guide for setup).

Mining Outpost Gets Attacked

Cause: Enemy spawns in hostile sectors.

Fix: Build a Missile Turret or Laser Turret at the outpost. One turret is usually enough for early raids. For late-game raids, add Drone Shields.

Tested across multiple save files at Station Levels 5 through 12. Freight behavior verified in version 1.0.0.2.