Latest news with #Pixxel-led


Time of India
3 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Pixxel-led consortium to use own funds for EO satellite constellation
Pixxel-led consortium that won the government contract to design, build, and operate India's first fully indigenous commercial Earth Observation (EO) satellite constellation bid at zero cost. This means the group will bear the entire Rs 1,200 crore investment while forgoing the government's public-private partnership (PPP) offer of up to Rs 350 crore in support.'The winning bid was zero. I cannot reveal the other bids, but this zero bid by the consortium is a very strong statement that the private sector sees immense opportunities in space,' IN-SPACe chairman Pawan Goenka confirmed to Pixxel consortium, comprising SatSure, PierSight, and Dhruva Space, on Tuesday emerged as the lowest bidder (L1), ahead of two other technically qualified groups: Astra Microwave Products Bharat Electronics , Sisir Radar, and Spectragaze Systems; the second one was GalaxEye Space, with added that without an Indian constellation, the country would end up spending heavily on foreign data, and noted that the PPP model had drawn strong interest. Asked if IN-SPACe had estimated potential savings, he said it would depend on the constellation's revenue.'The lowest revenue estimate among the bidders was Rs 1,800 crore annually. If all of that would otherwise be imported, India could save about Rs 9,000 crore (~$1 billion) over five years,' he founder Awais Ahmed said the partners are confident of recovering the investment within a few years of operations, given strong demand in India and global markets. 'Pixxel and our consortium members will pool in our own fundraised money to put into the project. At a future stage we could augment it with more investor funding or by bringing a strategic partner or debt financing as well,' he told has raised $95 million across 11 rounds so far. SatSure has raised $27.1 million in 11 rounds, Dhruva Space $16.1 million in seven rounds, and PierSight $6.6 million in two rounds, according to consortium said its primary customer will be the Indian government. The group will also leverage its global customers globally in agriculture, oil and gas, mining and maritime sectors. "We'll sell to them as well and then other friendly governments,' Ahmed first satellite will launch within two years, with the rest following over two-and-a-half years. Goenka stressed that all contractual obligations, local content norms, and penalties will still apply despite no government project will deploy 12 satellites over four years carrying optical, hyperspectral, multispectral and synthetic aperture radar (SAR) sensors to deliver high-resolution data for agriculture, urban planning, disaster management, climate monitoring, and national security.


Time of India
3 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Pixxel-led consortium makes ‘suicide bid' at zero for EO PPP, to bear Rs 1,200-crore cost
Bengaluru-based Pixxel-led consortium, which has won the government contract to design, build, and operate India's first fully indigenous commercial Earth Observation (EO) satellite constellation, bid at zero cost. This means the group will bear the entire Rs 1,200 crore investment while forgoing the government's public-private partnership (PPP) offer of up to Rs 350 crore in support.'The winning bid was zero. I cannot reveal the other bids, but this zero bid by the consortium is a very strong statement that the private sector sees immense opportunities in space,' IN-SPACe chairman Pawan Goenka told Pixxel consortium , comprising SatSure, PierSight, and Dhruva Space, emerged as the lowest bidder (L1) ahead of two other technically qualified groups: Astra Microwave Products Bharat Electronics , Sisir Radar, and Spectragaze Systems; and GalaxEye Space, with request for proposal was issued a year ago, with IN-SPACe announcing the selection of the winning bidder on GalaxEye, one of the other technically qualified consortia, told ET that its bid was pegged at Rs 97 crore. Over the next four years, the team will deploy 12 satellites carrying optical, hyperspectral, and synthetic aperture radar (SAR) sensors, delivering high-resolution data for agriculture, urban planning, disaster management, climate monitoring, and national Jyoti, Director, Technical Directorate, IN-SPACe, told ET that the first satellite will be launched within two years, with the remaining 11 to follow over the next two-and-a-half years. 'Once the first set of satellites is launched and initial data is received, it will undergo extensive validation and calibration before being offered to the commercial market,' he said the first satellite includes a lot of R&D as it has clearly defined the specifications in the tender.'It's not just about launching 12 satellites but meeting exact parameters on revisit frequency, data resolution, and spatial coverage,' Goenka said, adding that for the first time, an Indian satellite will see multiple payloads or data capture capabilities integrated into a single known for its hyperspectral imaging expertise, will spearhead satellite design and integration . SatSure will contribute with its knowledge in geospatial analytics and value-added services for sectors such as agriculture and infrastructure, while Dhruva Space will provide its expertise in satellite platform and ground segment solutions. PierSight will bring its capabilities in maritime surveillance , leveraging Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) technology to enhance monitoring and analytics over oceans and coastal regions.