Portugal’s Omnidea buys Orbex assets, eyes launcher push

Portuguese space company Omnidea has bought the production assets and intellectual property of Britain’s Orbex, an insolvent company that had led one of the five consortia selected by the European Space Agency for the European Launcher Challenge. The deal gives Omnidea a route into the small-launcher market at a time when Europe is trying to build its own orbital launch capacity.

In an interview with ECO, chief executive Tiago Pardal said the acquisition includes a launcher manufacturing centre and a flight and ground systems electronics hub in Scotland, as well as Orbex’s intellectual property. The spaceport is not part of the transaction, and the value of the deal was not disclosed. Pardal said Omnidea is buying assets rather than the company itself, meaning it is not taking on Orbex’s liabilities.

Pardal said the Scottish assets complement Omnidea’s existing work in Portugal, where the company has been focused on propulsion and on its Viriato launcher project. He said Orbex had been developing a launcher with “many similarities” to Omnidea’s plans for a vehicle capable of carrying payloads of up to 200 kg, and that the acquired operations bring capabilities in structures, electronics, communications and flight termination systems.

Omnidea does not expect an orbital launcher by 2028, the timetable originally envisaged under the European Launcher Challenge. Pardal told ECO that “if it is in 2035, that is probably more realistic”, while adding that there is a market window between 2030 and 2035 in which the project “has to happen”. He also said the company will need to raise outside funding, potentially through bonds or venture capital, and expects to start working on that in 2028.

Pardal said the launcher could eventually serve Omnidea’s own satellite ambitions through Geosat, an operator linked to the Atlantic Constellation. “It would make sense for us to have the capacity to launch our own satellites”, he said, while stressing that Omnidea must first assess the Orbex assets, draw up a new technology roadmap and evaluate financing options.

Originally published at Eco.pt