Ice

Ice is, in simple terms, a source of components, each of which serves as fuel for individual modules, stations, and other applications. This list includes the following components: Heavy water, Liquid ozone, Strontium Clathrates, as well as Helium/Oxygen/Nitrogen/Hydrogen isotopes. It is important to clarify that each of the last four components has its own fractional-territorial affiliation, being found only in specific types of ice. You can find the table with all the information regarding their locations at the bottom of the page.

Now, let us discuss the role of ice and its extraction in general. You have already understood that ice serves as fuel, which is primarily needed by corporations, alliances, and coalitions to power their strategic structures, such as stations and outposts. It is also required for super-capital ships, such as dreadnoughts and titans. The most frequent consumption of fuel components occurs in specialized modules, each of which requires its specific type of fuel. For instance, consider a cynosural beacon in the form of a portal, through which industrial and combat ships jump to traverse great distances instantaneously; it requires Liquid Ozone for this purpose. Meanwhile, the Industrial Core allows the activation of a module for compressing ore, ice, gas, moons, and mercoxit using Heavy Water. You will find all additional information regarding the modules and the types of fuel necessary for their operation in the table below.

Now we come directly to ice mining, which is available only to accounts with Omega status or through an expert system purchased temporarily in the luxury store. First, we need to study the skill "Ice Mining" and acquire the necessary equipment, which you can view in the ice fittings section, after which you can begin mining. When searching for ice, it is important to know that it is only found in anomalies visible in the "Exploration Probes" section. Once located, you may perform a warp jump to that location.

The primary distinction of ice mining from other resource extraction methods lies in the fact that the volume extracted per cycle is always equal to 1000 m³, making the mining cycle crucial. The cycle time can be reduced through skill training, installation of superior equipment, as well as the use of implants and bonuses from flagships.

In sectors with a high level of security, ice mining is particularly popular, as the ice chunks contain a substantial volume of resources and are located close to one another, facilitating convenient AFK mining, especially when a ship equipped with a compressor is nearby, which alleviates the need to frequently unload ice at the station. It is also worth mentioning that if the entire anomaly is mined out completely, it will eventually reappear over time. Unfortunately, this leads to a moderate price for ice compared to gas, which will not respawn in the same location after a certain period.

In conclusion, I would say that ice mining is profitable when there are ships nearby that allow for the compression of ice using a compressor, as well as provide bonuses to the mining speed. Significant earnings are only realized when the mining operation involves at least five paid accounts with Omega status.