Moray based rocket firm secures £40m for Highland space project
Orbex are hoping to start launching small satellites at a launchpad near Tongue from next year
More than £40 million has been awarded to a Forres based firm to help towards launching rockets from a Sutherland spaceport.
New investors have joined the project, led by the Scottish National Investment Bank (SNIB).
Orbex are hoping to start launching small satellites into low Earth orbit from next year
The launch pad near Tongue is expected to be the UK´s first operational spaceport.
"Dedication" of Orbex team
Orbex recently revealed its “Prime” rocket in its final form, making this the first full orbital micro-launcher to be unveiled in Europe.
Prime is a 19-metre long, two-stage rocket designed to transport small satellites weighing up to 180kg into low Earth orbit.
Orbex CEO Chris Larmour, CEO says the latest round of funding is "testament" to the work of his team
He said: "We´re delighted to have closed this new funding round led by the Scottish National Investment Bank.
"Orbex has made significant progress to get to this point, with the invention of ground-breaking, innovative technology, the rapid development and testing of the launch vehicle, the expansion of our manufacturing footprint in the UK and Denmark, the creation of the UK's first orbital spaceport in mainland Scotland, and the growth in customers from the UK, Europe and America signing up to launch dedicated payloads with Orbex.
"These results have only been made possible by the maturity and dedication of the entire Orbex team, who bring a huge amount of skill and experience to their tasks from a wide variety of industries, launch systems and spacecraft.
"This significant new funding round is testament to the work of that team and will allow us to continue to build Orbex towards our long-term goal of establishing a reliable, economically successful and environmentally sustainable European space launch business."
SNIB say this is a very exciting time for the Scottish space sector.
Executive Director Nicola Douglas said: "With Orbex, we will have a rocket assembled in Scotland, launching from Scotland and likely transporting satellites built in Scotland into orbit.
"This investment is a great example of the Bank working with other investors to support scale-ups in Scotland and aligns with our mission to invest in innovation and the industries of the future.
"We’re building a full end-to-end commercial space ecosystem in Scotland and we’re proud to play our part in this funding round, which will help deliver jobs and prosperity for the space sector and the wider economy."