As part of the UK\u2019s updated space strategy to be announced this week, the government is dedicating \u00a330m in funding for the SaxaVord spaceport in Shetland, expected to be the site of the first vertical rocket launch from continental Europe in the next few months.<\/p>\n
The investment, which is subject to due diligence, is accompanied by \u00a330m in funding from private investors, and will fuel an ambition to provide up to three-quarters of Europe\u2019s orbital launch slots from a former RAF radar station on the island of Unst. SaxaVord has regulatory approval for up to 30 launches a year.<\/p>\n
In addition to the commitment to SaxaVord, the government will pledge \u00a3148m towards \u201cdeveloping rockets providing the UK with assured access to space\u201d.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s understood the package, which overlaps with the UK\u2019s commitment to European Space Agency launch programmes, will mostly provide opportunities for British companies developing space technology<\/a> in areas such as refuelling, robotics and satellites \u2013 but will also be open to European launch-tech operators seeking to base operations in the UK.<\/p>\n The space strategy will set out \u00a37.8bn to be spent across government departments to 2029-30, drawn from budgets decided at the last spending review.<\/p>\n Figures from UKSpace, the sector\u2019s trade association, show that in 2021-22 the UK\u2019s 1,800 space companies were bringing in almost \u00a319bn a year.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen we think of space, our first instinct might be to think of the moon landings and rockets launching from Texas, but UK industry is playing an increasingly vital role in building the new tech increasingly used in space launches,\u201d said Jonathan Reynolds, secretary for business, innovation, science, and trade.<\/p>\n Engineers in Stevenage have built the Rosalind Franklin Rover, which is due to take part in European Space Agency missions to look for signs of life on Mars, while the Goonhilly radar system in Cornwall has helped to track the Orion spacecraft on its recent voyage.<\/p>\n But the industry has not been without challenges. Orbex, a firm which once represented the UK\u2019s best hope of a rocket launch and was valued at $220m, fell into administration in February. SaxaVord has also had to delay launches.<\/p>\n \u201cThe success of a spaceport is not measured by one rocket or one launch. It is measured by whether it provides a safe, trusted home for many launch providers over many years. That is exactly what we are building at SaxaVord,\u201d said Scott Hammond, the company\u2019s chief executive.<\/p>\n Sign up to newsletters from The Observer<\/p>\n Ben Zaranko on the economy<\/p>\n Weekly analysis from the Observer\u2019s economics editor, making sense of the economic ideas and debates shaping all of our lives.<\/p>\n