Space companies bet big on PSLV

Space companies bet big on PSLV

Context

At least three overseas space companies have bet big on the PSLV-C40 launch of Friday. They each have put a 100-kg-class microsatellite on it as a testbed of their potential future constellations

Other launches

Also, at least two older constellation operators have brought new batches to be put in space by the Indian light-lifting launcher

Payload

Three of the 31 going to space on it are ISRO’s satellites Cartosat-2F, Microsatellite and INS-1C

Backdrop

The PSLV, resuming after a failure in August, is placing these and 25 nanosatellites (up to 10 kg) in orbits 505 km away from Earth. The nanosats also carry experiments of companies and universities from multiple countries

Significance

• More business: Once the technologies are proven, they may lead to their operators’ firming up new constellations and the requirements for launching them in future. Hopefully they bring in more business to Antrix
• On its 42nd flight and 209 foreign customers behind it, the PSLV’s onus seems to be getting as big as the brand; a few of the current customers have tried other launchers but with mixed luck. In the $ 5.5-billion global market for satellite launch vehicles, there are not too many similar vehicles available in time and which can take up such small satellites for their operators
• ₹95 crore in earning: Antrix, the business arm of the Indian Space Research Organisation, earns ₹95 crore from arranging the PSLV-C40 flights for 28 customer payloads, which together weigh 503 kg

Antrix: Way ahead

For the next four years, Antrix has signed contracts worth ₹800 crore including the current crop. They include a couple of dedicated or fully commercial launches, which earn more money for the company

• Deals worth another ₹350 crore are in the pipeline
• Antrix is also looking at bigger sights and started pitching the bigger GSLV vehicle in international tenders
• For the fiscal 2017-18, Antrix expects a turnover of over ₹1900 core, slightly more than the previous year’s. ISRO is marketing only the spare PSLV capacity and is trying to increase the manufacturing capacity of the booster through industry, Mr.Sasibhushan said.