Luxembourg's Ministry of Economy has confirmed that its Department of Space Affairs has been joined by the space team from Luxinnovation.
In charge since December 2013 of the space policy at a national and international level, the Ministry of the Economy is now joined by the 3 dedicated people of Luxinnovation to strengthen its service of space affairs.
In charge of the political and financial aspects of the collaboration with the European Space Agency (ESA), the Ministry of Economy also takes over the space-related responsibilities of Luxinnovation, which was ESA's national contact point for Luxembourg to participate in the various ESA programmes, thus enabling them to position themselves in a sustainable manner in this market.
The pooling of the expertise of Luxinnovation's specialised resources and the team in charge of space affairs at the Ministry of Economy follows the development of the national space industry, notably due to the launch of the SpaceResources.lu initiative and the high level of interest by foreign companies and investors. Further strengthening the governance of the sector, the integration of Luxinnovation staff within the Ministry of Economy also anticipates the creation of a future national space agency.
Since joining ESA in 2005, Luxembourg has put in place a strategy for the development of the space sector, which is one of the priorities for diversifying the national economy. At present, around 40 companies, including the satellite operator SES and 3 public organisations, are involved in the space sector in Luxembourg for an overall workforce of more than 700 people.
