European Investment Bank Invests €37.5 Million in Aerospacelab to Support Belgian Satellite Manufacturer

Strategic Insights -

The European Investment Bank (EIB) has provided Belgian satellite manufacturer Aerospacelab with €37.5 million in financing to support the company's research and development and reinforce the European Union's strategic autonomy in space technologies. This investment is part of Aerospacelab's recently announced Series B funding round and is backed by InvestEU, the EU's flagship program to mobilize over €372 billion in additional investment from 2021 to 2027.

Key Takeaways:

  • The EIB financing will enable Aerospacelab to further develop and expand its portfolio of satellite platforms able to carry a broader and heavier number of payloads, thereby extending its applications range to telecommunication and earth observation operations.
  • The operation is backed by InvestEU, the EU's flagship program to mobilize over €372 billion in additional investment from 2021 to 2027.
  • The agreement falls under EIB Group's flagship TechEU Programme, which aims to support an additional 1,000 European tech champions with venture capital products annually.
  • Aerospacelab is pioneering the deployment of advanced software and hardware infrastructure that will allow the mass manufacturing of large constellations of small satellites in short lead times, boosting the EU's capacity to scale and compete in cutting-edge New Space technologies.
  • This is the bank's first investment in a Belgian space company and in micro-satellite manufacturing, complementing its "New Space" portfolio towards strategic autonomy.
  • Prior investees include Spire Global, D-Orbit, EnduroSat, Kayrros, Gomspace, LeafSpace, and Sateliot.

Statistics:

  • €37.5 million in financing provided by the European Investment Bank to support Aerospacelab's research and development.
  • €372 billion in additional investment scheduled to be mobilized by InvestEU from 2021 to 2027.
  • €70 billion in support of European tech champions planned by EIB Group by 2027.
  • 1,000 European tech champions to be supported annually by TechEU Programme.

Sources:

  • European Investment Bank (EIB)
  • InvestEU programme
  • TechEU Programme
  • Aerospacelab's press release (no date provided)
  • European Investment Bank, "European Investment Bank invests €37.5 million in Aerospacelab"
  • European Investment Bank, "TechEU Portal"
  • European Investment Bank, "InvestEU programme"
  • European Investment Bank, "Background information"
  • Contify.com (original source material)