Orbex (Orbital Express Launch Limited) had what you could probably call a breakout year in 2022 becoming the first European launch startup to secure Series C funding and taking over the construction of a high-profile launch facility project.
The most notable of its achievements in 2022 is without doubt the £40.4 million in Series C funding it secured bringing its total funding to €114 million. This is significant because the company now has sufficient funding to complete the development of its Prime launch vehicle, including the maiden flight and likely beyond. No other European launch startup can currently claim this milestone. The only reason Orbex loses out to RFA in the ranking is that they’re not yet beginning integrated stage testing of Prime’s propulsion system.
The other significant event from Orbex in 2022 was the announcement that the company would be taking over the construction Space Hub Sutherland in Forres, Scotland. The company will utilize the facility as the home base of its Prime launch vehicle customizing the facility and its operations to its needs. In order to manage the construction project, the company has turned to Jacobs who is not only NASA’s largest services provider but also an investor in Orbex.
Earlier in the year, Orbex submitted its application to the UK’s Civil Aviation Authority for a launch licence, unveiled its first fully-stacked prototype of Prime that the company utilized for integration and procedure testing, and, along with Force Technology, won an ESA contract to develop advanced rocket engine testing utilizing a new x-ray inspection system.
Web: https://orbex.space/