The startup behind India’s first private space launch plans to put a satellite into orbit in 2023
It expects to be able to do so at half of the cost of established launch companies, the founders of Skyroot Aerospace told Reuters in an interview.
The Hyderabad-based company, backed by Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund, GIC, says the $68 million it has raised will fund its next two launches.
Thousands of small satellite launches are planned in coming years as companies build out networks to deliver broadband services like SpaceX’s Starlink and to power applications like tracking supply chains or monitoring offshore oil rigs.
In Japan, Space One, backed by Canon Electronics and IHI Corp, plans to launch 20 small rockets per year by the middle of the decade.
India opened the door to private space companies in 2020 with a regulatory overhaul and a new agency to boost private-sector launches.
