NEREID SECTOR — OrionEX faced renewed questions this week after multiple accounts suggested the corporation had already initiated subsurface work on Abyssis prior to any formal license award.

Several sources familiar with surface operations described activity resembling small-bore tunneling and early drift preparation, rather than the non-invasive surveys permitted under filing rules. If accurate, the timing would place these efforts after bidding opened and before any official announcement of awards.

OrionEX issued a short rebuttal, calling the allegations “categorically false.”

“OrionEX has not conducted, and will not conduct, extraction on any Nereid world without a duly issued license,” the company said.

The statement acknowledged “standard exploratory practices” permitted under filing and notice, but denied any claim of commercial-scale mining.

Licensing status

As of this publication, sector authorities have not awarded licenses for Nereid worlds. Republic rules allow only limited sampling ahead of an award. Officials declined to comment on OrionEX’s activity, citing ongoing review.

What has been observed

Equipment movements. Independent observers reported freight transfers and modular rigging consistent with pilot tunneling rather than surface-only surveys.

Worker accounts. Several individuals claiming recent shifts near Abyssis described dust plumes and hauled rock inconsistent with assay-only access.

Paperwork hints. One source referenced documentation for early “drift/vent” prep; United Colonial has not authenticated the material.

Tartarus Station sightings

In a separate sighting, heavy-duty extraction equipment bearing OrionEX markings was briefly observed at Tartarus Station. Witnesses reported bulk power units and modular rigs staged near the cargo apron. The equipment did not appear on public manifests, and OrionEX did not address the sighting in its response.

For now, the reports remain unverified frontier rumor—but they add to growing scrutiny of OrionEX’s push into the Nereid Sector, the Republic’s most distant development frontier.