The European Space Agency (ESA) has begun signing the first contracts for its European Launcher Challenge (ELC), a programme designed to help Europe stop relying on foreign launchers to put satellites into orbit. Among the companies selected is PLD Space, the Elche-based firm that in 2023 launched its MIURA 1 demonstrator rocket on a suborbital flight.
The contract, worth 158.9 million euros and financed mainly by Spain with German support, positions the company as one of the central players in the future European launcher ecosystem.
The agreement is split into two components. The first aims to consolidate the commercial MIURA 5 service and progressively ramp up its launch rate until 2030, at a time when the company says it is already seeing growing commercial interest in the rocket in international markets.
The second, focused on what PLD Space describes as "enhanced orbital capability", will fund upgrades to MIURA 5 so it can carry heavier payloads and reach more distant orbits, as well as adding propulsive landing, the first step towards reusing the rocket.
The prelude to MIURA Next
