Looking at the prospects of getting a share of the global satellite launch business, the Department of Space has approved NewSpace India Ltd’s (NSIL) budget plan of ₹10,000 crore.
Revealing the business prospects of the company, Radhakrishnan D, Director-Technical & Strategy, NSIL, said, “For raising the money, we are exploring both debt and equity. The money raised will be spent on building required manpower in all. We will be hiring 300 people and other critical infrastructure to strengthen the business.”
He added, “Currently, the company is spending through grants from the Department of Space and ISRO. With good revenues in the last two years, we are now embarking on a self-sufficient model of generating our own funds. We may seek grants for a year, and later on, it is our own revenues to survive.”
The company got an allocation ₹700 crore in the Union Budget which it expects to use in the next financial year.
The company, in its first year (2019-20) of operations, earned ₹300 crore.
This year, it expects to close around ₹400 crore and has projected earnings of ₹400 crore for fiscal 2021-22.
Multiple clients
NSIL, within a span of two years, has emerged as a credible low-cost launcher of satellites.
“The company has garnered 340 clients spread across 34 countries. A bulk of the clients and business is coming through launches. A majority of clients are US-based,” said Narayanan G, CMD NSIL.
Of late, global satellite launchers (companies) have lowered their rates. This has made satellite launch rates competitive.
“But with our Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) success rate and number of launches every year, we are capable of competing with anyone in the world,” he added.
He further noted, “We have already executed launch services, spread over four PSLV missions for 45 auxiliary customer satellites and the recent one was a primary satellite from INPE-Brazil.”
Bags order
For this fiscal, NSIL has bagged four dedicated launch service contracts. Narayanan declined to name the clients but said, “These four launch service contracts are to be executed at two launches per year spread over three years.”
To further its business, the company, along with PSLV launches, is also gearing up for GSLV Mark3 and Small Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSLV)launches.
Narayanan said: “NSIL has initiated discussions with users regarding communication satellite capacities. Shortly, we will be finalising the requirements for new satellites in consultation with various users and start procuring, owning, launching and providing services, primarily in the communication sector.”