Leading European space tech company The Exploration Company (TEC) announced it has raised $160 million in Series B funding co-led by Balderton Capital and Plural, with participation from Bessemer Venture Partners, NGP Capital, French Tech Souveraineté, DeepTech & Climate Fonds (DTCF) and Bayern Kapital. The funding round also included significant follow-on investment from EQT Ventures, Red River West, Cherry Ventures, Promus Ventures and Omnes Real Tech Fund. And this is the first time two European sovereign funds, French Tech Souveraineté managed by Bpifrance and DTCF, have invested together.
This funding round brings TEC’s total raised to nearly $230 million. And the funding will be used to develop and test Nyx, expand the 200-person team, and scale capacity.
Launched in 2021 by Hélène Huby (former VP Orion-ESM at Airbus) and an experienced team from Airbus and ArianeGroup, TEC develops, manufactures, and operates spaceships to serve the logistical needs of space stations and space exploration. And with a focus on reusable and refillable spacecraft, TEC aims to make space exploration affordable, modular, and sustainable.
TEC is driving a new era in European space sovereignty, offering the continent with reusable and refillable space vehicles, which will be essential as space exploration escalates in the next decades. TEC estimates the addressable space logistics market in Low Earth Orbit and around the Moon to be over $300 billion over the next decade, partially driven by the growing number of space stations being constructed including Axiom, StarLab, Vast, Orbital Reef and the Lunar Gateway, as well as the exploration race to the Moon and Mars. While transportation capabilities are currently concentrated among a few players in the US, China and Russia, there is a drive within Europe to enable its own space exploration capacities.
The company is developing Nyx, which is a reusable and in-orbit refillable spacecraft that can be launched from any heavy launcher and fly to any space station. And it will be able to return to Earth with up to 3,000 kg of cargo – the largest down-mass available worldwide – and subsequently refurbished for its next mission. The cost of this service will be 25% to 50% less than other vehicles.
TEC, the first European company to sign a Space Act Agreement with NASA, had reached a major milestone this year when it signed its first major contract with the European Space Agency (ESA), ranking number one in the European space capsule competition. Plus, the company is on track to launch its mid-size capsule Mission Possible next year carrying 300kg of customer payloads. Nyx Earth’s maiden flight is set for 2028, to carry cargo for ESA to the International Space Station (ISS).
Lazard worked as the sole financial advisor, and Hogan Lovells was the legal advisor on the deal.
KEY QUOTES:
“This significant raise is a reflection of not only the talent and commitment of the team at TEC but also that building global companies with European roots can only be done through fostering trust and cooperation between European countries. 98% of our shareholders are European, demonstrating that the continent can finance bold entrepreneurs. Space will play a critical role in shaping humanity’s future, and I want to contribute to building a future which is peaceful and cooperative and our European DNA fits perfectly with this mission.”
“Over the past 12 months, we have hit major operational and financial milestones and signed significant service contracts with both space agencies and commercial clients. This new funding is the next step in scaling up our ambitions and I’m delighted to welcome Plural, Balderton Capital, NGP Capital and Bessemer to our journey, alongside our previous investors. Their support and ambition will be critical as we take another important step closer to our Nyx Earth launch and build a European space leader.”
– Hélène Huby, co-founder and CEO of The Exploration Company
“The planets aligned for this investment and we’re delighted to be supporting Hélène and the team with this new funding round. With their unparalleled expertise and visionary approach, The Exploration Company is poised to redefine European leadership in space exploration. Their mission to make space exploration more accessible and sustainable promises to unlock unprecedented opportunities not just for Europe but for humanity’s future in space. We’re thrilled to fuel this journey toward a new era of European space leadership – one that will reshape our understanding of what’s possible beyond Earth.”
– David Thévenon, Partner at Balderton Capital
“TEC is a company that I believe is sitting on the kind of tinder box that you don’t see often as an investor. It’s operating in a huge market where demand for launches and delivering cargo dramatically outstrips supply, in a region which has received decades-worth of institutional investment, in a political climate where policy-makers know they need to take urgent action if they want to safeguard our critical assets. When you add in a founder who you believe can emulate the kind of value creation we’ve seen in commercializing space in the US, you have a near-perfect set of ingredients for success.”
– Khaled Helioui, Partner at Plural
