SSLV tech winners In 6 weeks, final RFP for EO constellation soon: Goenka

BENGALURU: India’s space promoter cum regulator, the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe), is set to announce the winner of the Small Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSLV) technology transfer in the next six weeks, chairman Pawan Goenka told TOI. The final three bidders have submitted details, with evaluation now underway.
“We are just about starting the process of evaluating those bidders. All the bids have come in, all the details have come in and now it’s probably a matter of six weeks or so before we can declare who the bidder will be and who will get the technology for SSLV,” Goenka said.
This development comes as part of IN-SPACe’s broader push to involve the private sector across all segments of the space industry, from launch vehicles and satellites to ground stations and applications.
Goenka projected that India will soon have multiple private launch options available: “Hopefully by the end of this year or maybe middle of next year, we will have three operating rockets for small launches in India and that will give us the ability to try and capture a large share of small vehicle launches.”
The launch capability will be supported by the new spaceport in Kulasekharapatnam, which is under development by Isro and expected to be ready in less than two years.
On the proposed Earth Observation (EO) constellation, he said the final Request for Proposal (RFP) for public-private partnership constellations will be released this month to six shortlisted bidders. “The draft RFP has already gone out to the shortlisted parties… we have had an internal review of those queries and now we are in the process of finalising the RFP that should go out by the end of next week,” he explained.
The recently announced Rs 1,000 crore fund for the space sector over five years will be allocated based on proposals from companies rather than predefined areas. “We have not earmarked anything for any specific area. We are going to see how the demand comes,” Goenka said, adding that he expects more demand from upstream than downstream sectors.
TOI had reported last week that Sidbi Venture Capital Limited has been selected to manage the Rs 1,000 crore fund dedicated to supporting private companies in India’s space technology sector.
IN-SPACe is also working with states to create manufacturing clusters, having already signed agreements with Tamil Nadu and Gujarat, with discussions ongoing with Karnataka and other states.
“On ground services, authorisations have been granted to four private sector entities to establish ground stations as commercial services, with the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) having provided recommendations on licensing structures,” Goenka said.
The organisation is conducting initiatives branded as Space Applications Adoption Workshop (SAAW) to connect potential users with service providers and stimulate demand for applications.
Goenka said that all these efforts align with India’s ambitious target of achieving a $44 billion space economy by 2033. He emphasised that IN-SPACe’s current activities across all subsectors, including communications satellites, are oriented toward meeting this long-term goal.