Ibadan, 2 February 2023. – European space tech company, The Exploration Company, has announced €40.5 million in Series A funding to enable an era of affordable, sustainable, and open space exploration.
EQT Ventures and Red River West led the round, which saw participation from both new and existing investors. This included Promus Ventures, Cherry Ventures, Vsquared, Omnes Capital, July Fund, Partech, Possible Ventures, Habert Dassault Finance, Schlumberger, and Sista Fund. With the capital, The Exploration Company aims to commercialize its first full-scale space capsule (launch planned for 2026), finalize and test launch its second capsule demonstrator (launch planned for 2024), and expand the team.
Speaking on the funding, Hélène Huby, Co-Founder and CEO, explains, “we want to democratize space exploration by providing more sustainable and affordable capacities. Nyx, our spacecraft, is the first space capsule to be privately funded, the first to use green propellants, and the first to open source its operating system. As such, we can enable nations, space & non-space industries, and individuals to participate in and contribute to the building of the new space world”
Huby notes that the funding will considerably stimulate Europe’s shift towards strategic autonomy in the space industry. “With no European solution to carry goods and humans to the space stations around the Earth and the Moon, we are providing Europe with the capacity to participate in the exploration of the new space worlds while creating a sustainable, affordable, and alternative global player.”
With the funds, The Exploration Company will commercialize its maiden capsule, Nyx Mission Odyssey, which will fly goods to space stations and return to Earth. It will also finalize and fly its second demonstration capsule, Nyx Mission Possible, which will perform a controlled re-entry in the atmosphere. As a result, it will prove one of the most critical and enabling technologies to build reusable spacecraft flying humans.
