- May 16, 2022
- Tech
- Data
- Cloud
- Luxembourg
- Security
- Startup
- Development
- Digital
ESCRIC launches the world's first start-up support programme dedicated to Space Resources
On October 26th, the European Space Resources
Innovation Centre (ESCRIC) Start up Support Programme (SSP) has been presented by
Mathias Link, ESRIC director, in presence of the Luxembourg's Minister of the
Economy, Franz Fayot and of representatives of the ESA, LSA and LIST. Located in
Luxembourg, it is the first programme worldwide dedicated to commercial
initiatives in the field of space resources utilization.
The SSP will support the specific needs of early-stage
ventures/start-ups to prove their technological value proposals and enable the
development of near-term sustainable business models targeting
terrestrial/space applications and Space Resources utilization. The programme
will be run together with ESA and Technoport, the leading technology incubator
in Luxembourg. Two application calls will be implemented on a yearly basis, the
first call is expected in November 2021.
ESRIC, powered by the Luxembourg Space Agency (LSA) and the
Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology (LIST) with the European Space
Agency (ESA) as a strategic partner, was established in Luxembourg in August
2020. Besides developing research activities along the value chain of space
resources, the centre will support commercial initiatives from established
players and start-ups, enable technology transfer between space and non-space
industries and encourage public-private partnerships and new initiatives in the
field of space resources.
The ESRIC Start up Support Programme is one of the four
pillars of ESRIC and will support early-stage start-ups in the space resources
sector to refine their business plan, attract their first customers and secure
their first investments.
"The ESRIC Start up Support Programme will play a key
role in accelerating the next generation of space resources related business ideas
of the most promising entrepreneurial teams. It will be developed in close
interaction with the other pillars of ESRIC, in particular its research
activities all along the value chain of space resources utilization",
explains Mathias Link, director of ESRIC.
It will also pave the way to the consolidation of an
ecosystem of technical and business players, and contribute to promoting
effective collaboration models with early-stage ventures with the aim of
investigating the new technology developments that are the most relevant for
future Space Resources applications.
Pre-incubation: incubation and residency: tailored
support during up to 5 years
The ESRIC SSP programme will be organised in 3 phases
building on each other.
The pre-incubation phase, which lasts 3 months, will allow 5
selected start-ups to validate technical concepts and align them with market
opportunities. They will benefit from in-kind support, both for the technical
and business aspects of their project, provided by ESRIC and its partners.
Further to the pre-incubation phase, the best project will
be selected for a 2 years incubation phase, during which the start-up will be
able to confirm its technical value proposal and further develop the business
model.
Further technical and business support will be provided
during the incubation phase, and a 200K€ non-equity & non-refundable
funding will be allocated to the start-up.
A third residency phase of maximum 36 months will be
possible for the start-up, to ensure follow-up on technical developments and
the further growth of the sales/customer pool.
Two application calls will be run on a yearly basis for the
first phase of the programme, and open to all start-ups worldwide. A
geographical presence in Luxembourg will be mandatory for the incubation phase.
"Luxembourg
positions itself once again as a pioneer with the launch of the world's first
start up support programme dedicated to space resources. This initiative was,
after the creation of ESRIC in 2020, the next logical step for the development
of Space Resources in Luxembourg, in Europe and beyond." says Franz
Fayot, Minister of the Economy. He added: "Close collaboration between
national and international partners has been key and I would like to
congratulate them on a project which will be instrumental for the
Spaceresources.lu initiative."
"Space Resources will drive the future of space
exploration", reminds Marc Serres, CEO of the Luxembourg Space Agency.
"Today, technological breakthrough is needed to enable the use of space
resources, and the SSP is an exceptional platform for entrepreneurs who have
commercial ideas to develop in that field."
"It's always a pleasure and an honour to work hand in
hand with ESA", says Thomas Kallstenius, CEO of LIST. "At
LIST, we believe that space resources research will have a positive effect on
our life on earth. We are particularly interested in dual use technologies. The
ones that can have both terrestrial and space applications. We see there many
potential synergies with our other activities in the material or the
environment sectors. Our mission is to create impact for the society. This
Start up Support Programme is a win-win situation: start-ups will learn from
us, and we will be challenged by their new fresh ideas to create a higher
impact."
Press release by the Ministry of the Economy, the Luxembourg
Space Agency (LSA) and the European Space Resources Innovation Centre (ESRIC)