Further Fillip To NewSpace India Limited As Cabinet Approves Transfer Of 10 In-orbit Satellites

The Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on 8 June approved the transfer of 10 in-orbit communication satellites from the Government of India to NewSpace India Limited (NSIL).

Further, NSIL got the Cabinet nod for an increase in its authorised share capital from Rs 1,000 crore to Rs 7,500 crore.

NSIL is a relatively new central public sector enterprise (CPSE) under the administrative control of the Department of Space. It is the commercial arm of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and is tasked with functions such as the production of satellites and launch vehicles, marketing of space-based services, and transfer of domestic space technology.

NSIL was set up on 6 March 2019 to meet the ever-increasing demands of the Indian space programme and to commercially exploit the research and development work pursued at ISRO in order to cater to the rapidly growing global space market. This is also meant to act as a springboard for the domestic industry working in the space sector.

According to a Cabinet note, the nod will enable the space CPSE, through greater financial autonomy, to materialise its capital-intensive projects and programmes and “thereby offering huge employment potential and technology spin-off to other sectors of the economy.”

“This approval is expected to trigger domestic economic activity in space sector and increase India's share in the global space market,” it said.

India accounts for only about 2 per cent of the global space economy, which is valued at $360 billion.

One of NSIL’s key mandates is to own satellites for Earth observation and communication applications and providing space-based services.

Technology transfer to Indian industry is another key mandate. Just over two weeks ago, the CPSE announced the transfer of 64 technologies to industry.

NSIL is currently undertaking the GSAT-24 satellite mission as its first demand-driven communication satellite mission since the launch of the space reforms in June 2020. The CPSE was empowered to build, launch, own, and operate a satellite and provide services to a customer as part of the reforms that approved the participation of private enterprises across all the phases of India's space activities.

GSAT-24 is a four-tonne class, 24-Ku band communication satellite that will provide high-quality television, telecommunications, and broadcasting services over India. NSIL has leased the entire satellite capacity (as it is authorised to do) to Tata Play for meeting their direct-to-home (DTH) application needs. The satellite will take off on the French Ariane 5 rocket’s first flight of the year on 22 June 2022.

NSIL is set to launch at least two more foreign satellites, according to a Times of India report.

The CPSE has launched 45 international customer satellites on ISRO’s polar satellite launch vehicle (PSLV) during 2019 to 2021, Union Science and Technology Minister Dr Jitendra Singh revealed to the Lok Sabha in March this year. The public sector enterprise earned a foreign exchange revenue of about $35 million and €10 million during this period through commercial satellite launches.

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