If successful, the launch of the firm’s XL Rocket would mark the first rocket to go to space from the UK. The multi-launch agreement with SaxaVord, which operates the spaceport, will run for the next decade, giving Skyrora the ability to build towards its target of 16 launches a year by 2030.
The Shetland spaceport site is expected to support a total of 605 jobs by 2024, including 140 locally and 210 across the Shetland region. A further 150 jobs will also be created through wider manufacturing and support services.
It has been attracting growing interest from firms like Lockheed Martin, which confirmed it would transfer its satellite launch operations there once it is up and running.
According to a study by Scottish Enterprise last year, income from Scotland’s space sector could reach over £2bn by 2030.
Skyrora has been testing increasingly larger rockets with short high-altitude launches since 2018 in the build-up to the proposed launch next year.
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