Innovative spacetech startups based in Hyderabad have taken the lead in spearheading India’s private space sector exploration and are gearing up to breach many frontiers of space this year and beyond, finds Swati Bharadwaj
Skyroot Aerospace
After having successfully tested the third stage of its first orbital rocket Vikram-1 recently, Skyroot Aerospace is now gearing up to test-fire the first stage of what will be India’s first privately built orbital rocket, in the coming few months. The startup, which was set up in 2018 by a couple of former ISRO scientists, shot into the global limelight when it sent India’s first privately built rocket – Vikram-S – into sub-orbital space in November 2022.
“The firing test for only Kalam-1200, the first stage of Vikram-1, is pending. We are targeting the testing of the solid-fuel engine in the next few months. We are eyeing the launch of Vikram-1 in the second half of 2025,” said Pawan Kumar Chandana, co-founder & CEO, Skyroot Aerospace.
While the rocket is named after Vikram Sarabhai, the father of India’s space programme, the various engines have been named after India’s missile man and former President of India APJ Abdul Kalam. While the second stage of Vikram-1 is Kalam-250, the third stage is Kalam-100, which was tested earlier this month.
“We have already tested the second and third stages of the rocket as well as the kick stage or the orbital adjustment module (OAM), called Raman-II,” he said. While all three stages of the rocket will be powered by solid fuel, the kick stage, which is fully 3D printed, will be powered by liquid fuel.
The entire structure of Vikram-1, which will be 23 metres tall or seven storeys high, has been made completely from carbon composite. The orbital rocket will be able to carry up to 400 kg of payload into a low-Earth orbit.
“Few customers have already signed up to send their payloads, which are test satellites, into space on board Vikram-1,” he said, adding that the company is also gearing up to launch its larger satellite Vikram-2 in 2026 after validating the orbital capabilities of Vikram-1.
Skyroot has raised $95.5 million (Rs 750 crore) so far from the likes of Singapore’s GIC and Temasek, the founders of Hyderabad-based Greenko Group, Myntra founder Mukesh Bansal’s Meraki Labs, Sherpalo Ventures, Worldquant Ventures, Solar Industries, AUM Ventures and Graph Ventures.
Ananth Technologies
Ananth Technologies, which late last year became the first private Indian company to get permission from Indian space regulator IN-SPACe to offer geosynchronous orbit (GSO) communication satellite services, is busy working on India’s first private sector GSO satellite that it aims to send into orbit either in 2027 or 2028.
To start with, ATL is developing a Ka band high throughput GSO satellite, weighing up to 3,000 kg. The satellite will be equipped with multiple transponders. ATL plans to launch a total of three GSO communication satellites starting next year.
“We are developing one Ka band satellite since it is to be operated for bandwidth distribution to remote areas. Based on the orbital position allocations as well as demand and economics, we may launch more than one satellite and we will build them for GSO as there is a need for more transponders,” said Dr Subba Rao Pavuluri, founder chairman & managing director, Ananth Technologies Ltd. “This will be a completely `Made in India’ satellite with launch also planned onboard ISRO’s GSLV from Indian soil for Indian use. It will help bridge the digital gap between urban areas and rural areas,” Dr Subba Rao, a former ISRO scientist, who set up Ananth Technologies in 1992, further said.
Recently IN-SPACe has come up with a demand plan for communication satellites for the country and there is a huge demand for these satellites, which is why we are planning three satellites now, he added.
ATL currently has the capacity to make about 20 small satellites per month and eight large satellites simultaneously over a period of over a year. The company has been part of several ISRO missions so far but this is the first time that it will be launching its own satellite. Over the past 32 years, it has contributed to over 100 satellites and 80 launch vehicles, most of which were for ISRO but it has also contributed to satellite subsystems for American companies and is now also working for Australian companies under the ‘Maitri’ programme between India and Australia.
ATL is also developing critical systems for ISRO’s ambitious human space flight programme — Gaganyaan, including the system that will ensure smooth communication flow between the crew module and the ground station as well as the specialised tiffin boxes, water containers, and heating systems that the crew will need in space. It is also contributing to the avionics systems, navigation systems, and a certain amount of integration of subsystems into the launch vehicle.
It already has integrated design, development, manufacturing, and testing facilities for satellites in Bengaluru, facilities for spatial satellite applications and defence-related work in Hyderabad, and launch vehicle-related facilities in Thiruvananthapuram.
Dhruva Space
After having become India’s first private player to send satellites into space in November 2022 with its 0.5U P-DoT Cubesats — Thybolt-1 and Thybolt-2, Dhruva Space is now preparing to put its first commercial satellite – P-30 – into space this year.
The P-30 nanosat, weighing between 20kg and 50 kg, will be sent into lower earth orbit on a hosted payload mission later this year. The satellite will carry a hyperspectral imager for earth observation applications for an Australian customer.
The company has already developed various satellite classes. Apart from the P-DoT cubesats and the P-30, it also developed the P-Nu 500-kg microsatellite with confirmed customer contracts already in place. The startup already has an order book pipeline of Rs 400 crore in place.
“For us, 2025 is super exciting primarily because we are all geared up for launching more satellites over the next couple of years. There is a lot of development work that has gone into building the P-DoTs, launching them and then developing the P-30, which is our nanosat class, and then the P-Nu which is our microsatellite class,” said Sanjay Nekkanti, founder & CEO of Dhruva Space. He said the company has been working on all of these for a long time and it is this year that many of them will finally launch them commercially as the company now has contracts with customers in place.
A key development for 2025 for Dhruva Space is the completion of the first phase of its new facility that will focus on the production of spacecraft solar arrays and with plans to later expand into nano and microsatellite assembly, integration, and testing. “The revised timeline looks like anywhere between September of this year until March of next year for the facility to be operational,” Nekkanti explained.
The startup, which was set up in 2012 and raised Rs 150 crore so far till Series-A from investors such as IAN Alpha Fund, Blue Ashva, IvyCap Ventures and Blume Founders Fund, is also gearing up to raise another Rs 275-400 crore through a combination of equity and debt this year.
With the Indian govt’s recent announcement of space programmes worth Rs 50,000 crore and increasing investor interest in the space sector, Dhruva Space is well-positioned to play a significant role in India’s growing space economy in 2025 and beyond, he added.
