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The Luxembourg-based European Space Resources Innovation Centre (ESRIC) recently announced the first cohort of its Space Resources Accelerator (part of the BSGN Industry Accelerators).
This cohort includes six ventures with proven technical and commercial capabilities that aim to develop applications to empower ESA's lunar exploration efforts and drive progress across the entire space resources value chain. By joining this acceleration programme, the ventures will begin with a project preparation stage, during which they will refine and strengthen their proposals with inkind support from ESRIC. The goal is to launch a project co-funded by ESA that will demonstrate their technologies in lunar conditions.
"With the addition of this first cohort from the Space Resources Accelerator (SRA) to the ones from our incubator - the Start-Up Support Programme (SSP), ESRIC will have engaged with more than 25 ventures since its inception in 2020," stated ESRIC Director Kathryn Hadler. "We are glad to work alongside the private sector to support their lunar exploration efforts and be in capacity to engage with ventures throughout their scaling journey, from idea to scaleup, through our various programmes."
The first cohort is composed of the six following ventures each of which proposed a space resource enabling project. They were selected by a joint ESA-ESRIC evaluation panel:
- FibreCoat, Germany-based, founded in 2020 with 40+ employees and €25M+ raised (Series B), is producing high-performance materials for the defence, space, mobility and construction markets, paving the way for fibre-based solutions to support lunar infrastructure and humanity's exploration endeavours
- Maana Electric, Luxembourg-based, founded in 2018 with 25 employees, €18M+ revenue generated (order book of €100M+) and €1M+ raised (Seed), is specialised in in-situ resource utilisation (ISRU) and power generation for both terrestrial and space markets, advancing towards its goal of producing solar resources on the Moon
- Orbital Matter, Poland-based, founded in 2022 with four employees and €1M+ raised (Pre-Seed), is focusing on construction and additive manufacturing in microgravity for the space market, which could also enable lunar infrastructure use cases
- Orbit Fab UK, founded in 2022, the European office of the US-led Orbit Fab group, with 60+ employees and €40M+ raised (Series A), is developing the orbital supply chain and infrastructure needed to reliably supply fuel in-orbit, changing the "single-use" paradigm for satellites and building a bustling orbital economy. Their technology can be adapted for use on the lunar surface to autonomously refuel landers, hoppers and rovers
- Space Power, UK-based, founded in 2022 with 10+ employees and €250K+ raised (Pre-Seed), is developing universal power beaming for the space market with a plasma cleaning technology to enable lunar dust mitigation and maximise operational efficiency
- Volta Space Technologies, Canada-based, founded in 2020 with 10+ employees across Canada and US, private funds raised (Seed), is building a wireless power transmission satellite constellation to bring energy as a service globally and around the Moon, enabling explorers and settlers to operate affordably and indefinitely.
"We designed the Space Resources Accelerator in just one year, and I am particularly proud of the bridges we have built between technology and finance, as well as public and private endeavours," said Alexander Godlewski, Business Accelerator Officer. "We were impressed by the high quality of the applications we received - primarily from Pre-Seed to Series A ventures across fourteen countries in Europe and Canada, developing solutions in data, mobility, power and infrastructure. These ventures are scaling rapidly, creating jobs and attracting investors demonstrating the growing market for Moon-ready/compatible technologies. It is time for more space agencies and investors to join forces to support the Moon champions of tomorrow."
Launched in November 2020, ESRIC is an initiative of the Luxembourg Space Agency (LSA) and the Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology (LIST) in strategic partnership with the European Space Agency (ESA).
