Huge response to the proposal for private investments in Indian Space Sector, 26 proposals including four foreign companies received by IN-SPACe

Bengaluru: – Following the Indian government’s decision to open the space sector to the private sector, there is a massive response to the proposal to invest in the industry. The Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre, the controlling institution for space, has received varied proposals starting from building a ground station to making launch vehicles. As per reports, the 26 proposals received include 22 Indian and four foreign companies.

A few months ago, the union government announced the new space policy. The decision to open the private sector’s space sector was taken for the first time in Indian history. The doors to the Indian space sector were opened even for foreign companies. As foreign companies are allowed to participate in the Indian space sector, significant investments flow was expected even without partnering with an Indian company. The response received is in line with the expectations.

In all, IN-SPACe has received proposals from 26 companies. There are 22 Indian companies among them. Four foreign companies have expressed interest in participating in the Indian space sector. These include Amazon and OneWeb, which has investments of the Bharati Group. Archeron Group from the United Arab Emirates and Kongsberg Satellite Services (KSAT) from Norway also have submitted their proposals. OneWeb has expressed interest in building a network of small satellites and develop services based on them. Archeron Group has expressed interest in launching small satellites, and KSAT has expressed interest in building a ground station. Among the Indian companies, NELCO, a Tata group company, has asked for cooperation in Earth Orbit Network Services. L&T has presented a proposal for developing a Small Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSLV) to IN-SPACe. Some other companies and start-ups also have come forward. Alpha Designs from Bengaluru has expressed interest in developing small satellites. Proposals have been received even from Srinivas Institute of Technology, UNISAT, IIT-Mumbai and IIT-Madras. Space Kidz India also has submitted their proposal. ISRO Chief K. Sivan said that the response received from the Indian and foreign companies is very encouraging.

Meanwhile, K. Sivan had expressed confidence a few months ago, saying, ‘India will majorly benefit by opening up the space sector to the private sector. There will be huge progress in this sector in the future. The Indian industry will play a major role in the space economy in the coming times.’