/sci/ - Science & Math

>>15846451
> ESA will fly commercial
>"All 22 member states of ESA have agreed that we have to change how we procure the launcher of the future, and this is a very new way of doing it," Aschbacher said. "ESA will launch a competition of launchers without weight class limitations."
> Next year, ESA will open a competition to any European company working in the launch business. These companies can submit proposals to ESA through what the agency calls a "challenge" initiative. ESA will select several companies, perhaps up to three, for public funding that will come in the form of commercial service contracts, similar to how NASA works with contractors like SpaceX or United Launch Alliance in the launch arena.
> "It will be one, two, or three, that we will develop in a competition," said Toni Tolker-Nielsen, acting director of space transportation at ESA. "Perhaps later it will funnel down to two. We shall see how it goes."
> For reference, Andrew Parsonson of European Spaceflight has a handy ranking of European launch companies.
https://europeanspaceflight.com/top-european-launch-companies-of-2022-the-european-spaceflight-power-ranking/
14 different launch companies on that list
> "Some of these startups are working on micro-launchers today," Tolker-Nielsen said. "They might have different plans to develop their next launcher. They all have plans to grow. Some will go directly to a heavy or to a 5-ton (payload) launcher, some might choose to go to a 2-ton to low-Earth orbit launcher. As long as they respond to our service needs, there will not be any constraints on that."
> Germany, home to some of the most promising commercial launch startups in Europe, was pushing for the new competitive framework. France, where about half of the Ariane 6 rocket is built, tilts in favor of keeping ArianeGroup on solid footing.