A British government and industry-led report has called for increased investment to expand the country’s space sector six-fold and gain a 10% share of the global space market by 2030.
The Space Innovation and Growth (SIG) report plots a course to build…
A British government and industry-led report has called for increased investment to expand the country’s space sector six-fold and gain a 10% share of the global space market by 2030.
The Space Innovation and Growth (SIG) report plots a course to build an industry worth E40bn per year, which would entail the creation of 100,000 new jobs.
The SIG Team is headed by the Minister for Science Paul Drayson and Andy Green, CEO of IT company Logica.
Its plan will require government funding of the industry to double to an average of £550m per year over the next decade. This would catapult the UK from 21st in the world to tenth place in terms of percentage of GDP spent on space.
In his introduction to the report, Green wrote: “All this will cost money. However, our recommendations should enable the UK to cost-effectively meet national needs for services delivered from space and to promote new UK based services into overseas markets. It is true that these actions are attractive to industry, but they also provide the basis to help energise an economy emerging from recession.”
Government support will be bolstered through the encouragement of increased private investment from the City of London. The report notes the recent surge of Export Credit Guarantees provided by agencies in France, the USA and Canada.
One pertinent section states: “It is important that we maximise the use of private finance to make public sector procurement of space technology efficient, and in doing so strengthen transaction flow and expertise in London.
“We should encourage a selection of UK banks to actively develop capabilities in co-financing space projects involving European Space Agency and Export Credit Guarantee Department contributions. We should also promote the AIM market as a space venture market by identifying and publicising those city institutions which have an interest in investing in space projects.”
A wide range of recommendations are covered in the report. They include the need for a National Space Policy to act as a framework within which the recently announced UK Executive Space Agency can operate.
In addition, it outlines the necessity for a National Space Technology Strategy that has its own budget independent but complementary of ESA and research council funding.
This will allow UK agencies and companies to commit to research and development of cutting edge technology in order to claim a share of the new space markets that are sure to be born in the next 20 years.
Funding for the NSTC will come from government and industry and would start at £20m for 2010, rising to £100m per annum by 2015/16. R&D under this strategy will focus on Britain’s current core strengths such as robotics and space communications, but will also look to new markets such as launch vehicles.
The SIG Report also advocates more government capital guarantees and anchor tenancy agreements for UK satellite operators.
Britain does not currently have its own Earth Observation data service, a situation which the report argues must change. A British Earth Observation system could conceivably be funded through a Private Finance Initiative.
Another recommendation concerns the Mobile Satellite Services (MSS) market, where Britain holds a position of strength thanks to the market leader Inmarsat.
The report makes the case that Britain should work with other European countries to shape and promote this capability across the EU. It mentions Inmarsat’s S-Band project EuropaSat as an ideal vehicle to do so and also discusses how MSS projects should be financed.
The report states: “We strongly advise the UK’s relevant departments and agencies to work with European national governments and EU agencies to support UK proposals for a pan-European Private Public Partnership (PPP) initiative to complement private funding of the necessary infrastructure and product development.”
