It actually should be pretty easy to establish NPCs with the reach of PCs. Most PCs don't have special levels of resources. They mainly have special levels of 'willing to wander'. If you set up in a limited geographical area, either with literal boundaries (ooh, great rift, no jump 4? so sowwy) or story ones ("you have a subsidy agreement paying for your ship, so you have to operate within the Aramis Trace or become outlaws"), then its easy.
If your players are the sort to just run run away never coming back to the same place twice, then you'll have to create characters with similar sorts of motivations or membership in large organizations.
Ideally, you make it so the players want to find the NPCs, not ditch them. Whether because they are fun or hated or whatever.