Why In-Orbit Refueling Is The Missing Link In Space Infrastructure

Forbes

3 days ago

Reza Fetanat is Co-founder and CTO of Spaceium.
When we first started Spaceium, the idea of in-orbit refueling felt like something no one was really thinking about. Two years ago, when we spoke to other space companies, it wasn't on the radar. We found ourselves on calls explaining why it mattered. Why refueling wasn't just an operational add-on, but a foundational breakthrough that could unlock the full potential of space. Today, the conversation has shifted. Refueling is quickly becoming a critical priority across the industry, and for good reason.
The way I see it, in-orbit refueling is to spacecraft what EV charging is to cars. It extends range, enables flexibility and lowers the cost of doing business. It's the infrastructure piece the space economy has been missing.
Single-Use Spacecraft Create A Bottleneck
Right now, the vast majority of spacecraft are still single-use. They're launched, they complete their mission and then ... that's it. They become space junk or burn up on reentry. Not because they're broken or outdated, but simply because they've run out of fuel. Imagine buying a car, driving it to Chicago and then throwing it away because the tank's empty. It sounds ridiculous, but that's how space has worked, until now.
There's a growing class of spacecraft with propulsion systems that are designed to move things around in space (satellite tugs, cargo haulers, orbital servicing vehicles). These aren't meant to sit in one place for five years like traditional satellites. They're mobile infrastructure. And they expire the minute they run out of fuel. Not in five years, but in days or weeks, depending on their mission profile.
With in-space refueling, we give them new life. We allow them to go further, carry more and do more. That opens up enormous possibilities, both technically and economically.
The Real Refueling Opportunity Goes Beyond Satellites
A lot of competitors in this space are focused on refueling satellites. But what we learned early on from speaking to customers is that satellite manufacturers don't necessarily want to extend the life of their existing tech. Satellites are designed for long-term missions (five to 10 years), and by the time they near end-of-life, the technology is already outdated. Most satellite operators would rather replace the hardware entirely than refuel something built years ago.
But it's a totally different story with spacecraft that move. These missions rely heavily on fuel, and they burn through it quickly. That's where the demand is. That's where the opportunity is. And that's where Spaceium comes in.
Building The Superhighway In Space
Our vision is to create a network of stationary refueling stations in orbit, something we call the 'space superhighway.' Think of it like setting up EV charging stations along a major route. You don't need to carry all the fuel for the entire journey; you just need to know where your next stop is. That's what we're building: Infrastructure that lets spacecraft stop, refuel and continue on.
And just like roads and gas stations once made cars economically viable, we believe this infrastructure will do the same for space. Without refueling, every spacecraft has to be overengineered to perform perfectly the first time because there's no room for error and no second chances. That drives costs up. But if you introduce the ability to refuel and service these vehicles in orbit, suddenly, spacecraft don't need to be single-use or perfect. They just need to be good enough to make it to the next station.
That changes the economics entirely.
Refueling Expands The Entire Space Economy
When you introduce refueling, you expand what's possible for individual spacecraft and the entire space economy. You extend mission life. You move more payloads. You enable more research, more exploration and more value creation in orbit.
The space economy today includes launch providers, satellite servicing, cargo delivery to the ISS, reentry capsules and research in zero gravity. But the missing piece, the thing that connects all these nodes, is the ability to refuel and extend operations. Every time a spacecraft can go further or do more, the return on investment increases. That's how you build a sustainable orbital ecosystem.
Right now, 80% of a spacecraft's mass can be fuel. And once that fuel's gone, you're looking at spending millions to launch another one. With refueling, you preserve the investment, reduce redundancy and improve efficiency across the board.
A Future Built On Access And Agility
We're starting to see this future come into focus. Private companies have already landed on the moon. There's growing interest in Mars missions. And NASA has begun offering grants specifically seeking the type of technology we're building. Government customers are increasingly aware that if we want to push deeper into space, we need to make that path more flexible and accessible.
Right now, launches to Mars or the moon are limited by specific orbital windows. For example, the next optimal Mars window is late 2026. But if you have refueling along the way, those constraints disappear. You're no longer locked into a narrow time frame. You can launch whenever you're ready. That changes the strategic equation, and it may even ignite a race to the moon and Mars.
Keeping It Simple For Customers
One of the challenges we've tackled is integration. Most spacecraft today aren't designed to be refueled. They don't have ports or standard interfaces. But we've built technology that solves for that. While I can't share the specifics, I can say this: For our customers, the process will be seamless. No major redesigns. No complex retrofits. Just a simple, lightweight addition that enables in-orbit refueling as part of their standard architecture.
The hard part is on our side—but we've made sure it's easy on theirs.
A New Generation Of Builders
Ultimately, what excites me most is what this means for the next generation. Jeff Bezos once said that the goal of Blue Origin was to enable two people in a garage to start a space company. That's exactly what we're doing right now. And I don't think it should stop there.
Why not make space as accessible as software? Why not have kids playing with modular spacecraft the way they play with Arduino boards or Raspberry Pi today? With affordable, reusable, refuelable spacecraft, that vision is closer than people think.
We've already seen missions using Pixel phones as flight computers. It's happening. And with the right infrastructure, it's only going to accelerate.
Infrastructure As The Catalyst
In-orbit refueling isn't a niche add-on. It's the missing link. It's the infrastructure we need to make space truly accessible, repeatable and economically sustainable. We may be three people in a garage today, but the systems we're building are designed for a much bigger future. One where space isn't limited to billion-dollar missions and single-use hardware, but where anyone with a dream and a blueprint can build for the stars.
That's the future we believe in. And we're building the fuel stations to get us there.
Forbes Technology Council is an invitation-only community for world-class CIOs, CTOs and technology executives. Do I qualify?