As global demand for access to space surges, space launch service provider Rocket Factory Augsburg AG (RFA), on 7 August, announced it had raised a €30 million investment from KKR, a global investment firm.
The investment will facilitate RFA’s integrated first stage test and complete the company’s launch pad at SaxaVord Spaceport in Scotland, eventually bringing the RFA ONE microlauncher to the launchpad. With the investment, KKR, a global investment firm offering alternative asset management as well as capital markets and insurance solutions and with its investment, will become a leading investor in RFA alongside the existing strategic investor OHB.
RFA was founded in 2018 by OHB, a European multinational technology corporation headquartered in Germany, as a fully owned subsidiary start-up with the goal of developing a highly reliable, low-cost small-satellite launcher.
“We aim to provide cost-effective access to space and data-generating business models in space for monitoring, connecting, and protecting our planet. This new financing reflects confidence in RFA and validates our cost-efficient approach and technical achievements”, said Stefan Tweraser, CEO at RFA.
The first flight for the RFA ONE is scheduled for the second quarter of 2024.