Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd (SPA0027)

SSTL Response to House of Lords UK Engagement with Space Committee call for evidence 2025

Introduction to Surrey Satellite Technology

In 1985 Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd (SSTL) was formed as a spin-out company from the University of Surrey to transfer the results of research into a commercial enterprise. The Company grew steadily and has worked with a wide range of international customers and partners, building , launching and operating ~74 satellites for 22 countries over the following three decades – including the first Galileo satellite and 34 subsequent operational Galileo payloads.

In 2009 Airbus bought the majority shareholding from the University of Surrey, allowing SSTL to fulfil its growth potential. SSTL, headquartered in Guildford, Surrey, operates in commercial, civil government and defence markets and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Airbus.

SSTL pioneered the design, build, test and operation of small satellites and has been a world leader in the field for over 40 years. Since its formation, SSTL has contributed around £1.15bn in exports to the UK economy. SSTL has maintained its position as a global leader in small satellites, which are undergoing tremendous global growth. SSTL’s business model is based on four space market sectors: international, institutional (ESA), commercial, and defence.

The opportunities and challenges relating to the UK space sector, including the comparative strengths of the UK, how the sector’s growth can be supported, and the potential of new space technologies.

Growth and UK strength in Small Satellites

The National Space Strategy refers that the UK excels in the manufacture of spacecraft and highly complex payloads, with particular strength in Small Satellites[1]. Small satellites are becoming a future growth engine within the space sector.

What are small satellites:

Small satellites are a cost-effective, commercial approach to space. Unlike traditional methods, which are expensive, lengthy and resource-intensive, small satellites reduce mission costs by focusing on essential features, using advanced electronics, and adopting strategies like vertical integration. As a result, these satellites are often much smaller, quicker and more efficient than traditional ones.

Relevance to this call for evidence

Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd (SSTL) pioneered the design, build, test and operation of small satellites and has been a world leader in the field for over 40 years. The first small satellite mission UoSAT-1 was launched in partnership with NASA in 1979 and went on to spin out the company Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd that to date has launched 74 missions and currently has 11 satellites in various stages of manufacture including two missions for the UK MoD.

The impact of small satellites has been dramatic. The small satellite manufacturing market, which was valued at $20.7 billion over 2013-2022, is set to grow by +268% to $76.3 billion over 2023-2032[2]. Almost all of the global growth in the applications of space is dominated by what is enabled by small satellites and it can be extrapolated that the Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) growth in the global applications and services market attributed to small satellites to 2032 is approximately 20% [3] (removing space tourism and communications). In addition, the large non-geostationary orbiting satellites market is forecast to grow exponentially, and small satellites are cited as one of the future growth engines in this area.

It is important to note that the small satellite approach is an upstream enabler for downstream services and applications: it is not an application in and of itself and it should not be treated as one. To ensure the UK retains its leadership position in small satellites and takes its share of the forecast growth, the main intervention needed in the UK is greater recognition and inclusion of the approach as part of national space policy, particularly for UK-funded programmes. This will support the growth in local industry and ensure it can continue to compete in the global marketplace.

The opportunities and challenges facing space-related businesses operating in the UK, including access to capital, ability to ‘scale-up’, and international competition.

Procurement policy to support UK capability and exports

Many space-faring nations have policies that support their local industries, helping them maintain capabilities and stay competitive. The UK does not follow this approach and instead promotes open competition: this has resulted in UK companies competing against foreign counterparts who receive significantly more financial support. Introducing national procurement programs would boost the development and resilience of the UK’s industrial base, improving its ability to compete internationally.

This issue is evident in the UK's reliance on R&D grants for funding. The focus on grants sends mixed signals to industry about government priorities, which in turn affects companies' willingness to invest. A better balance between grants and procurements is needed to clearly signal priorities and encourage more private investment. Importantly, procurements require clear definitions of civil government needs, something the industry is eager to see. Therefore, introducing significant national space procurements, alongside grants, is a crucial step to stimulate more private investment, which is vital for increasing growth.

The government often measures space sector success using Return on Investment (ROI). However, the end benefits of space are often spread between a large number of different beneficiaries across different sectors and over extended time periods – often decades.  For example, space supports essential services like telecommunications and weather forecasting, as well as contributing to national exploration, national security and scientific discovery which is why space is often seen by nations as a strategic capability. Emphasis on ROI is alone does not account for the broader benefits space provides, such as the impact on growth and national security. 

Existing international partnerships that the UK is involved in, and the potential for future partnerships with both state and commercial actors.

SSTL’s success in fostering international space partnerships as an example of the projection of UK soft power

In the 1980’s SSTL established a unique programme to develop a comprehensive space capability in non-space fairing countries. This has led on to over 20 programmes being delivered for 18 different international organisations and has led to the creation of six national space agencies being formed as a direct result. These programmes involve highly educated trainees spending up to three years living and working in the UK while receiving hands on exposure to spacecraft manufacturing. The experience and relationships formed during this time endure; trainees often go on to more senior influential roles with their own government agencies and carry with them a high regard for the UK’s space capability, an appreciation of responsible behaviours in space, and often yields new projects with the UK.

With growing interest in space-based applications and services there is more evidence for future collaborations with nascent or non-space fairing nations, where the UK can credibly play a role in building space capability. 

Relevance of developing space nations and procurement policies which effect the UK’s long term capability

SSTL’s business is primarily in the export market and features a high proportion of customers in space developing countries, these markets present an opportunity because there is often an incentive to buy abroad because local capabilities are under-developed.

Many of the overseas markets in space-developed countries are hard for UK companies to access due to policies of buying locally to support their own national space industry. UK Government interest in exports is often attracted to these nations because of large budgets but that belies the difficulty in gaining access.

In comparison, the UK’s own national procurements are often in open competition, leaving UK industry at an overall disadvantage to competitors from other space developed nations.

As one of the four largest contributing members of the European Space Agency (which notably includes members from Canada, Norway and Switzerland and is not an EU body), the UK should pursue policies with ESA which support the development of UK’s own space capability. The National Space Strategy highlighted the UK’s strength in small satellites, the UK has an opportunity to promote more ESA programmes to be able to take advantage of small satellites to help the UK maintain its strength.

The shift in the USA’s foreign policy posture towards isolationism offers a real opportunity for the UK to become a world leader in the Space industry, collaborating with space emerging nations and using space as a medium through which we can exert Soft Power influence.  With the USA withdrawing from a leadership role, it is inevitable that China and Russia will attempt to fill this void.  SSTL has a long history of delivering know-how and technology transfer programmes to space emerging nations and, in doing so, has demonstrated it is possible to have long lasting international collaborations in space with these countries.

The collaboration between academic institutions, government, and commercial space firms in the UK, including but not limited to space research and development and space spin-out and start-up firms.

SSTL – a highly successful space spin out from Surrey University

SSTL is an exemplar of the transfer of academic space research to commercial exploitation through the spin-out in 1985 from the University of Surrey following the initial two research microsatellites built and launched in 1981 & 1984. The Company grew steadily and has worked with a wide range of international customers and partners, building and launching 74 satellite missions for 22 countries over the following three decades. In 2009 Airbus bought the majority shareholding from the University of Surrey, allowing SSTL to grow. SSTL is a wholly owned subsidiary of Airbus.

SSTL has achieved over £1.5bn in exports of space missions and employs ~400 people. Around 1500 people have worked at SSTL and many have remained in the space sector whilst some have spun out  and built other successful space companies in the UK.

Education and skills; in particular the skills gap in the UK space sector.

SSTL is committed to fostering talent and addressing the skills gaps in the UK space sector. Through a structured early careers pathway, active outreach programs, and a growing focus on social value.  Long-term sector challenges persist in aligning education and training with workforce needs. The lack of a clear, updated national space plan with UK-led space missions limits the ability to create a strong talent pipeline. Additionally, a strategic approach is needed to incentivise young people to pursue space careers in a globally competitive landscape.

The Need for a National Space Plan to Drive Talent Development

The UK space sector benefits from extensive outreach and engagement, SSTL undertakes various initiatives, including:

Early Careers Pathways – Apprenticeships, graduate programs, and structured work experience opportunities.

Active Outreach – Open days, school engagement, professional talks, academic support, and participation in national events.

Social Value – Increasing focus on early engagement in schools, promoting STEM careers through targeted initiatives.

STEM Ambassadorship – Several SSTL employees, including leadership, are STEM ambassadors, ensuring direct engagement with young learners.

While these efforts help generate interest in space careers, they lack a national focal point. Other leading space nations, such as the US, France, and Germany, structure their skills development efforts around national programs like Artemis 1, Moon to Mars initiatives 2, or large-scale Earth observation missions. In contrast, the UK does not currently have a long-term national space plan that provides a clear, continuous pipeline of flagship projects.

The UK Space Sector Skills Survey 2023 3 highlights that 52% of space organisations report skills gaps in engineering and technical fields, with early-career retention challenges. Although the National Space Strategy provides broad ambitions, the lack of specific, ambitious UK-led missions limits the ability of industry and academia to align skills development efforts with future workforce needs. Without UK-led missions to rally around, students and early-career professionals will struggle to see a defined trajectory and may pursue careers in other industries or seek opportunities abroad. A national space plan with a commitment to UK-led missions would provide certainty for skills investment, helping industry and academia shape targeted training and career pathways and excite the future workforce.

Building a Highly Skilled Workforce with Long-Term Incentives

The UK needs a coordinated approach to ensure long-term workforce development, addressing gaps in both technical skills and career progression. Best practices from other industries and nations suggest that a successful approach should include:

Government and Industry Partnerships – The UK can learn from models such as the European Space Agency’s Talent Development Programs 4, which integrate industry placements and research opportunities into national strategies.

Strategic Skills Mapping – The UK needs a dynamic skills strategy that adapts to sector demands. The UK’s Space Sector Skills Advisory Panel should work closely with industry to ensure alignment between education and workforce needs.

Early and Sustained Engagement – Countries with successful talent pipelines start engagement at school level and provide clear progression into higher education and industry. SSTL’s planned social value ramp-up aligns with this best practice by expanding STEM outreach efforts.

Incentives for Career Retention – Competitive salaries, structured career development, and dedicated upskilling programs can prevent talent drain to other sectors. The UK Space Partnership 5 has identified the need for more attractive career paths within the UK.

SSTL supports these efforts through direct industry engagement, expanding early careers initiatives, and advocating for a long-term skills roadmap that secures the UK’s future in space.

The UK space sector requires a structured national space plan with clear, ongoing UK-led missions to act as a rallying point for future talent. Long-term strategies must be put in place to incentivise young people to choose and remain in space careers. By aligning industry efforts with government policy, the UK can secure a sustainable, highly skilled workforce that ensures its leadership in space innovation and exploration.

1              Artemis - NASA

2              Moon to Mars: Trailblazer program - Department of Industry, Science and Resources

3              Space Sector Skills Survey 2023 Report - GOV.UK

4              ESA - Why professional development at ESA could be your career game-changer

5              https://www.spacepartnership.org.uk/

The future of UK space science and civil exploration.

The OECD refers to Space Science and the Exploration programmes as a major driver of innovation with investment resulting in decades of breakthroughs. However, continued innovation is not a guaranteed phenomenon and needs support[4].

Commercialisation of space in this area is relatively new but as human exploration of space increases there are promising opportunities for growth. An example where this is happening is in the renewed interest of governments and companies to go to the Moon and Mars. SSTL has pioneered development of commercial infrastructure comprising services for Lunar navigation and communication, to lighten the load on the growing number of projects which are planned to go to the Moon and Mars during the next decade. The ESA Lunar Pathfinder spacecraft being built by SSTL will provide affordable communication services to lunar assets on the surface and in orbit around the Moon. It will be followed by Moonlight, which aims to lead Europe in enabling connectivity from the lunar surface and to the Earth, serving the needs of future missions by creating a constellation of satellites for satellite communications around the Moon. The Moonlight programme works with industry to create a shared service in telecommunications and navigation, which is predicted to contribute to the activation of a €100 billion lunar economy.

Growth in small satellites in Science and Exploration can help maximise the number of UK scientific breakthroughs but it cannot be achieved without support via UK policy. The potential for a new small-budget mission class which has been proposed within ESA called Mini-F, is a timely opportunity for UK industry and academia to take a leading role from the UK.

The impact of space on national security and resilience.

Our reliance on space infrastructure and services as a nation (both civil and military) is extremely well documented, as are the growing threats to this infrastructure from potential adversary action in the domain.  The realisation of the enormous impact that adversaries could have on our way of life, physical and economic security led to the creation of UK Space Command and the publication of the UK Defence Space Strategy.  However, the UK’s aspirations to mitigate the risks to our critical space infrastructure, and exploit space-based technologies to achieve operational advantage in the Earth domains, have not progressed at the pace expected by UK Industry.  SSTL has been successful in winning contracts to deliver ISR Operational Concept Demonstrator satellites in TYCHE (on orbit) and JUNO (in design); these satellites will help MOD to progress towards its future operational ISTARI constellation but, with no funding or future programme and no plan expected until some months after the conclusion of the 2025 Strategic Defence Review, the UK is well behind schedule on its aspirations to achieve an operational constellation by 2030.  In capability to protect critical space assets from adversary action in space – that is arguable the higher priority – the UK is even further behind with no concept demonstrators yet under contract, let alone a clear plan for a fully operational “Control of Space Domain” system.  Whilst the Strategic Defence Review process is the right and proper way to align future budgets with prioritised Defence capabilities, risks to national security continue to grow with no clear plan to mitigate them; add to this our reducing confidence in the US to assist in protecting UK national interests and the challenge is exacerbated.  Industry – including SSTL – is ready and willing to respond to the demand signal.

The majority of space activity is peaceful, but within ESA there are excellent opportunities to use the UK’s contribution to steer proportion of R&D into dual use technologies. Examples of dual use e.g. EO instruments/missions which can be easily adapted for Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR), satellite telecommunication, Satellite Navigation and Timing etc. SSTL have evidence of recent examples of novel technologies which have been developed for civil applications with ESA and which subsequently proved to be of interest from a dual use perspective.

14 April 2025