The Exploration Company raises $450 million for reusable spacecraft
European space company The Exploration Company (TEC), which operates in Germany, France, Luxembourg, Spain and Italy, has raised $450 million in a Series C round. As TechCrunch reports, the funds are planned to be used to develop reusable spacecraft and create the foundation for a European heavy-lift launch vehicle. The company called the round the largest Series C in the history of European space companies.
The round was co-led by Atomico and the EQT-managed Scaleup Europe Fund, with participation from Bessemer Venture Partners. Bessemer Venture Partners partner Alex Ferrara will join TEC's board of directors.
The Nyx capsule and Storm engine
TEC's immediate goal is to develop the reusable Nyx capsule, which is initially intended to transport cargo and later people. The company plans for Nyx to dock with the International Space Station and return safely to Earth by November 2028.
According to Atomico, 10 missions have already been booked for Nyx, while the volume of contracts and commitments exceeds $2 billion. Some of these agreements have been concluded with institutional partners, including the European Space Agency and NASA.
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Series C funds will also be directed to the Storm rocket engine program. TEC CEO Hélène Huby said the company will need additional funding to build a launch pad and create the rocket itself.
A bet on reusability
TEC intends to build a larger rocket than Spectrum by Germany's Isar Aerospace. The company expects to achieve reusability through full-flow staged combustion technology, which is also being developed by SpaceX and Stoke Space. Huby called this cycle one of the most complex but most efficient for rocket engines and noted that a European company is developing such an engine for the first time.
Hélène Huby previously worked at Airbus and ArianeGroup for about two decades. French President Emmanuel Macron and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen congratulated TEC on securing the new funding.
