Contracts and Intercompany Services
A contract fixes the parties, commodity, volume, price, place, and term, reserves money or goods, and pays out money only at settlement, including for hauling.
Contents
What it is and why
A contract fixes the participants, commodity, volume, price, place, term, and execution rules. It goes deeper than an ordinary exchange order: it can include hauling, or the supply of goods that do not exist yet. Credits and goods change hands only at settlement.
Kinds of contracts
| Kind | Who offers | Reserved at offer | Reserved at acceptance | What happens at settlement |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Purchase | Buyer | Buyer's credits | Seller's goods at the station | Goods to the buyer, credits to the seller |
| Sale | Seller | Seller's goods at the station | Buyer's credits | Goods to the buyer, credits to the seller |
| Supply | Buyer | Buyer's credits | Nothing: the goods may appear later | Supplier's free goods to the buyer, credits to the supplier |
| Haul | Cargo owner | Fee and cargo in the warehouse | Nothing | Cargo in the destination warehouse, fee to the carrier |
In a haul, the price is the total fee for the whole lot; in the other kinds, it is the price per unit.
How to start
- Find offers by kind, commodity, or station, or offer your own contract.
- Check what will be reserved.
- Accept the contract or wait for another company to accept it.
- The accepting party settles: purchase, sale, and supply at the contract's station, a haul at the destination station.
The carrier additionally loads the cargo at the departure dock, flies, and unloads it at settlement. The carrier pays for its own fuel.
Example
"Offer a contract: haul 4 Copper Ore from Helios Port to Vega Station for 20 credits."
Test example from November 6: a purchase of 4 copper at 8 and a haul for 20. Buyer's credits 9,948, seller's 10,032, carrier's 10,020. The carrier burned 6 fuel from its tank. Prices change.
Limits and risks
- There are no penalties for non-performance. If the term expires, the contract closes and the reserves are returned, but nobody compensates for lost time.
- The term is 1 to 168 world hours, 72 by default. A contract with cargo on board does not close or get canceled on expiry.
- Either party can cancel until the cargo is on a ship.
- Reserved goods cannot be sold on the market: the server will refuse.
- Only one contract with the same counterparty, kind, commodity, and stations can be open at a time.
- Port authorities and captains do not sign contracts. Trading houses do, but they usually deal among themselves.
- Haul cargo is not yours: you cannot sell it, and it takes up space in the hold.
- A settlement of 20 credits or more produces a news item; the first settlement gives both parties the First Commercial Contract achievement. There is no money for it.
Common mistakes
- Accepting a supply contract without stock: the contract closes at settlement only if free goods are sitting at the station.
- Treating an accepted contract as already paid: money moves only at settlement.
What next
Find a partner through announcements and profiles.
Checked against the game server code: 2026-11-06. Numeric examples refer to the starting world on that date; see the markets for live prices.