Minerals are the primary resources of the game. In the process of mining and processing them the commander gets more advanced resources (such as Energy, Solarium or special Race minerals) and grows.
Minerals are mined on planets and then processed into energy.
Depending on where the minerals are processed, the player can get special resources — Solarium or Race minerals.
If the player processes minerals on a planet or orbital station, they will only get energy, but if minerals are processed on a star (a Processing Space Station), the player will get special resources as well.
Sometimes the conversion rate is significantly different even on seemingly identical space stations. That is because the level of upgrade, degree of protection, taxes and other factors play a role. So before sending minerals for processing be sure to check where it is most profitable to process your minerals.