Shetland spaceport project secures £30m of UK government investment
The UK government has invested £30 million into the SaxaVord Spaceport in Shetland to bolster national space strategy. This public funding is expected to trigger an additional £30 million in private investment to expand launch infrastructure.
Why it matters
This investment signals the UK's ambition to become a competitive hub for the commercial small-satellite launch market in Europe.
Image source, SaxaVord Spaceport Image caption, The funding will be used to build two more launchpads
The UK government has announced investment of £30m in SaxaVord Spaceport in Shetland as part of a new national space strategy.
A spaceport spokesperson said the funding was a "hugely significant" vote of confidence and would unlock a further £30m of private investment.
Several companies hope to use SaxaVord in Unst, the northernmost point in the UK, as a launch site for small commercial rockets.
A government spokesperson said space was "an increasingly important domain" for keeping the country safe.
Image caption, The spaceport sits on a former RAF base in Unst
SaxaVord is the UK's first fully-licensed spaceport and has regulatory approval for up to 30 rocket launches a year.
The company said the £60m public-private investment package would be used to design and build a second hangar and two more launchpads.
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