August 19 (SeeNews) - Bulgarian space technology scale-up EnduroSat will open by the end of August a nanosatellite technology testing laboratory in Sofia, in which it has invested over 4 million levs ($2.1 million/2 million euro), the ministry of innovation and growth said.
EnduroSat's planned Space Assembly Lab will close up the company's development cycle, which includes software, hardware, mechanics, assembling and verification testing, the ministry said in a press release on Thursday.
Founded in 2015, EnduroSat designs, builds and operates nano-satellites for a range of commercial, exploration and science missions. With a workforce of over 110, it focuses on inter-satellite connectivity and space data applications. EnduroSat partners with NASA, SpaceX and the European Space Agency (ESA).
In July, the Bulgarian company opened an office in the French city of Toulouse, which is home to the Airbus OneWeb satellite joint venture and is seen as the aerospace capital of Europe. EnduroSat said at the time that it will build local research and development (R&D) and business activities in order to forge partnerships with key space players and produce satellites locally in the long term.
In August 2021, the European Investment Bank (EIB) provided venture debt financing of up to 10 million euro ($10.1 million) to EnduroSat to help it boost space services and expand its Shared Satellite Service concept which democratises access to space data.
($ = 0.9917 euro)