Airbus and Safran, who between them control ArianeGroup, are asking for an additional €210 million – over and above the €140 million a year it already receives – in order to operate the Arianespace rocket system. The news was revealed by Europe in Space and France’s La Tribune newspaper.

The problem for ArianeGroup is that without rockets to launch it has zero commercial income. The long-awaited Ariane 6 rocket is now some 4 years late and is not expected to enter commercial service until Q4 2024 and some reports talk of a 2025 entry.

A smaller rocket, the Italian made Vega-C vehicle, is also subject to technical delays following on from a failed launch in December 2022. Vega-C is expected to return to launch status towards the end of 2024. Arianespace exclusively uses the Vega fleet for its medium-lift satellite launches. A less-powerful Vega rocket successfully launched a batch of twelve small satellites on October 8th.

La Tribune says the amount being requested by ArianeGroup represents a 150 per cent increase in its annual budget. The report hints that the request covers a 6-year period and therefore a potential budget increase of some €1.8 billion. The cash, if approved, will have to come from the European Space Agency and its member states.

Safran looks after the engines for the ArianeSpace rockets.

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Categories: Blogs, Business, Inside Satellite

Tags: Ariane, ArianeGroup, Arianespace, European Space Agency, Space