Swedish Space Corporation (SSC) and South Korean rocket company Perigee Aerospace will jointly launch satellites from the Esrange Space Center in northern Sweden following the signing of a collaborative agreement. Starting in 2025. Perigee’s Blue Whale 1 microlauncher will be the first-ever orbital rocket launched from Esrange.
Perigee’s two-stage launch vehicle can place up to 200 kg into a 500-kilometre Sun-Synchronous Orbit. Together, SSC and Perigee will develop a service concept with a shared payload space onboard the rocket to accommodate both companies’ customer bases. Enforced by SSC’s global satellite ground station network, this service could also be supplemented by additional space-to-ground services.
“I’m very pleased to announce this historic collaboration, our first orbital launch partnership,” said SSC CEO Charlotta Sund. “The market demand for this service is huge, and it’s needed now, by both European and international satellite owners. Perigee’s Blue Whale 1 rocket is an ideal match for our orbital launch complex at Esrange. With this partnership, SSC will be able to offer a competitive commercial European orbital launch service at our spaceport in Sweden. This is exciting news for us, and for the global space market.”
“SSC has an impressive 50 years of launch heritage, and the new orbital launch infrastructure at Esrange is laying the foundation for the years to come,” said Perigee Founder and CEO Yoon Shin. “By bringing our Blue Whale 1 rocket, soon ready for orbital missions, we will partner with SSC to create a state-of-the-art orbital launch service, including further delivery through SSC’s ground service offering. After a successful orbital launch from South Korea next year, we look forward to beginning this historic journey at Esrange.”
