C-Type Carbonaceous Asteroids Mining Market Research: the industry is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 19.0% from 2025 to 2031

The C-Type Carbonaceous Asteroids Mining market is entering a transformative phase in 2025, driven by expanding demand for volatile-rich space resources, technological advances in autonomous mining, and the increasing economic viability of space exploration infrastructure. According to the latest market analysis from QYResearch, the industry is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 19.0% from 2025 to 2031, expanding from USD 1.895 billion in 2024 to USD 6.303 billion by 2031.

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Company List

ConsenSys
Bradford Space
Moon Express
Ispace
Asteroid Mining Corporation
Trans Astronautica Corporation
OffWorld
SpaceFab
Boeing
Northrop Grumman Corporation

Product profiles for five leading companies:

ConsenSys

· Product: Arkyd 6

· Description:

· CubeSat-scale asteroid prospecting demonstrator

· Designed to test advanced optical imaging, power systems, and deep-space communications

· Dimensions: 6U CubeSat (approx. 10 × 20 × 30 cm)

· Mission: Validate asteroid detection technologies in low Earth orbit

· Key Goal: Locate volatile-rich near-Earth asteroids for future mining missions

Bradford Space

· Product: Comet8000 Water-Based Thruster

· Description:

· Non-toxic electrothermal propulsion system

· Total Impulse: Up to 15,000 Ns

· Thrust: ~0.2 N

· Propellant: Water or ethanol-based variants

· Application: Small satellite maneuvers, asteroid mission navigation

· Advantages: High specific impulse, safe ground handling, scalable architecture

Moon Express

· Product: MX9 Frontier Class Explorer

· Description:

· Payload Capacity: Up to 500 kg from GTO to lunar surface

· Propulsion: 9 PECO (high-efficiency) engines

· Configurations: Orbiter, Lander, Deep-Space Probe, Sample Return Vehicle

· Dry Mass: ~350 kg

· Mission Profile: Designed for asteroid and lunar mining delivery and retrieval operations

iSpace

· Product: SCARE (Space Capable Asteroid Robotic Explorer)

· Description:

· Robotic hexapod designed for rough terrain, slopes, and crater environments

· Degrees of Freedom: 18 (6 legs × 3 actuators)

· Payload Integration: Onboard sensors for subsurface resource mapping

· Autonomy: AI-based terrain assessment and path planning

· Collaboration: Co-developed with Asteroid Mining Corporation for asteroid exploration

OffWorld

· Product: Autonomous Robotic Mining Squad

· Description:

· Composition: Swarm of AI-powered mining robots

· Output: Capable of mining from hundreds of tons to over one million tons of ore per year

· Features: Real-time machine learning, autonomous coordination, fault-tolerant architecture

· Operating Environments: Lunar surface, Mars, asteroids

· Expansion: Designed to evolve into full closed-loop in-space manufacturing ecosystems

Application List

(as defined in the report)

· Fuel

· Construction

· 3D Printer

· Others

Type Classification

(as defined in the report)

· Organic Carbon

· Phosphorus

· Others

2025 Market Trends & Strategic Developments

AstroForge, a leading startup, has continued its aggressive push toward space resource extraction. In early 2025, the company launched its second mission, "Odin", aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. Although technical challenges prevented full mission success, Odin demonstrated new spacecraft architecture for in-space mining and is considered a critical stepping stone toward AstroForge's upcoming "Vestri" mission, planned for 2026. This highlights the maturity curve of commercial space mining ventures-from proof-of-concept to operational readiness.

Meanwhile, ConsenSys, the top-revenue company in the sector for 2024, has reportedly begun early-stage prototyping of a space-based processing unit capable of separating organic carbon and phosphorus from regolith collected on target C-type asteroids. These compounds are essential for life-support systems and synthetic fuel production in long-term space missions.

Bradford Space and Ispace are jointly piloting a semi-autonomous exploration module in low-Earth orbit designed to simulate asteroid surface conditions, enabling real-time testing of excavation tools under microgravity. Moon Express is also developing a modified robotic lander tailored for prospecting operations, targeting high-phosphorus asteroids for construction-grade material extraction.

From an application standpoint, demand for fuel extraction continues to dominate the downstream market, fueled by the aerospace sector's pivot toward in-space refueling and resource recycling systems. According to the report, fuel accounted for a significant portion of 2024 revenue and is projected to expand rapidly through 2031. These volatile-rich asteroids, abundant in hydrogen and methane, offer critical feedstock for propellant production.

The construction and 3D printer applications are gaining traction as well. These categories are driven by emerging plans to build modular space factories and habitats using iron, nickel, and cobalt extracted from asteroids. The report also identifies solar panel production as a future opportunity, leveraging rare-earth metals like thulium and holmium available in abundance on C-type asteroids.

Regionally, North America continues to lead in investment and operational capacity, supported by NASA partnerships and the involvement of defense contractors like Northrop Grumman and Boeing. The U.S. government's relaxed regulatory stance in 2025, aimed at bolstering commercial space development, has paved the way for more private sector engagement.

In Asia-Pacific, China, Japan, and South Korea have launched joint research initiatives focused on creating a shared orbital resource platform by 2028. China's projected share of the C-type asteroid mining market is rising sharply, supported by its expanding satellite manufacturing base and autonomous navigation capabilities.

Europe-led by Germany and the UK-is focusing on sustainability standards for in-space mining and has begun funding startups under the ESA's Horizon Asteroid Initiative. German firms are particularly active in developing in-situ resource utilization (ISRU) systems for extracting oxygen and water from asteroid materials.

The industry's investment environment is becoming increasingly competitive, with venture capital moving toward companies offering vertically integrated solutions-from detection to extraction and processing. According to the report, the top five companies control a significant percentage of global revenue, though newer entrants like OffWorld and SpaceFab are rapidly gaining attention for their cost-efficient robotics and AI-driven automation technologies.

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Looking ahead, the market is poised to capitalize on three core trends:

1. Miniaturization of spacecraft and mining modules, reducing launch costs.

2. Shift toward in-orbit processing and fuel production, minimizing Earth dependency.

3. Multi-national resource sharing platforms, improving economic and technical feasibility.

As competition escalates and governments continue to liberalize policies to attract space investments, the C-Type Carbonaceous Asteroids Mining market is set to become a multi-billion-dollar cornerstone of the evolving space economy. The convergence of AI, autonomous robotics, and precision propulsion will define the strategic advantage of key players over the next decade.

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