Updated 20 June 2025 at 15:28 IST
After Warplanes, HAL To Build Small Satellite Launch Rockets For India
Warplane maker Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd has secured the bid to privately manufacture India's small satellite launch rockets, as per the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorization Center (IN-SPACe).
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HAL I SSLV | Image:
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HAL Bid For SSLV: Warplane maker Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd has secured the bid to privately manufacture India's small satellite launch rockets, as per the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorization Center (IN-SPACe).
This is being regarded as a major move by centre to open its high-paced space industry to private players.
In February, three consortiums - Alpha Design Technologies, a unit of Adani Defence Systems and Technologies, state-backed Bharat Dynamics, opens new tab and HAL - were the finalists to acquire India's Small Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSLV) technology, as per a Reuters report.
HAL's Winning Bid For SSLV- Know All About It
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) informed on Friday that fighter jet maker HAL had applied independently.
HAL's wining bid was USD 59 million, Pawan Goenka, the Head of Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe) told reporters, adding that the technology transfer phase will take two years.
The move to hand the SSLV's technology to HAL marks a significant shift for India's space industry, which has already granted satellite communication service licenses to global and domestic firms such as France’s Eutelsat and Reliance Jio’s satellite venture.
By securing this bid to make the rocket, capable of carrying 500 kg payloads to low-Earth orbit, HAL will have the capability to independently build, own, and commercialize SSLV launches, Goenka added, as per a Reuters report.
About 20 companies had initially expressed interest in bidding for the SSLV, the first privatisation of its kind under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's policy drive to open up India's space industry.
The global low Earth orbit launch vehicle market was valued at USD 13.9 billion in 2023 and is estimated to grow to about USD 44 billion by 2032, according to Global Market Insights.
India, which accounts for only 2 per cent of the global space economy, is eyeing a fivefold expansion to USD 44 billion by the end of the decade.
Published 20 June 2025 at 15:28 IST