Astroscale (SPA0041)

Astroscale UK’s response to UK’s Engagement with Space

House of Lords UK Engagement with Space Committee

Introduction

Established in 2013 and headquartered in Japan, Astroscale has become a global leader of in-orbit servicing, assembly and manufacturing (ISAM) - dedicated to the safe and sustainable development of space. The company delivers a variety of innovative and scalable ISAM solutions, including life extension, in-situ space situational awareness, end-of-life services, active debris removal, refurbishment, and in-orbit refuelling. Since its first successful launch of a UK capability in March 2021, Astroscale has proven rendezvous and proximity operations (RPO) technologies in orbit during the ELSA-d and ADRAS-J missions. It has since been selected for pioneering missions with JAXA, the US Space Force, Japanese Ministry of Defence, the European Space Agency (ESA), the UK Space Agency (UKSA) and Eutelsat OneWeb – working across civil and defence programmes to develop sovereign capabilities alongside international partnerships. In the UK Astroscale has also developed its docking plates, which will support ongoing ISAM missions, enabling UK exports to customers including Airbus Constellation Satellites and NASA to name a few. As more satellite operators adopt in-orbit servicing to routinely inspect, relocate, remove, and extend the life of spacecraft, the potential of a circular space economy - and a future of no waste in space - is being unlocked.

In 2017 Astroscale established its first international entity in the UK, due to HMG’s progressive ISAM policy and regulations. It has grown from a highly-skilled workforce of five to nearly 250 people. In parallel it has developed a highly innovative supply chain across the length and breadth of the UK. Over £70m of foreign direct investment from Japan has supported Astroscale’s significant growth and the establishment of a facility in Harwell, Oxfordshire to develop and manufacture dual use sovereign capability. Astroscale is currently progressing its ELSA-M mission, as well as participating in HM Government’s (HMG) UK Active Debris Removal (UK ADR) Mission programme to remove existing space debris, with its ‘COSMIC’ solution.

We welcome the opportunity to submit evidence to the Committee’s inquiry, which will be important when looking at challenges and opportunities that our sector faces. 

Summary

The UK faces significant opportunities within the Space Sector, particularly in ISAM which is a strategic priority for the UKSA as well UK Space Command, where common technology supports broader objectives set out in the Defence Space Strategy around Space Domain Awareness (SDA) and Space Control. Currently, HMG is at the forefront of this sector with its forward-leaning approach to policies and regulation, but international competition is gaining momentum. To maintain this leading role and secure a significant share of the emerging ISAM market, HMG must continue to lead on domestic and international policies and regulation, whilst supporting a business environment that enables growth and investment.

This can be realised through a move to multi-year funding cycles, providing longer-term strategies within its strategic priorities, continuing its commitment to ESA programmes, leading in areas where there is an existing market advantage and exploring future national missions. Importantly, we would recommend HMG refines its focus and doubles down in these market lead areas like ISAM. Helping to grow those companies to commercialisation will enable a strong sovereign market that will support further investment and could lead to a strong civil and defence export market. In parallel we must grow a strong UK workforce – developing further apprenticeship standards, increasing early years career opportunities and retaining the expertise it has developed.

We must also address barriers to market. The UK’s world leading innovation sits within its SMEs, but barriers continue to hinder the growth of sovereign capability, particularly within Defence. In partnership with Government, we should look at how best to address this. Internationally, the UK should position itself as a leading voice in its strategically important areas like ISAM, particularly within organisations like UN COPUOS, NATO and Five Eyes. The UK should be leading policy and regulatory discussions, whilst developing opportunities for UK businesses.

In summary, if the UK was to embrace these opportunities and with industry tackle these challenges, we believe the UK can continue to lead and grow a world class ISAM market that supports both national and economic security.

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.

We see the ISAM market as a key opportunity for the UK. It is projected to be worth £14bn by 2030, and the UK is well-positioned to secure 25% of it, with the potential to become a global lighthouse for ISAM and advancing civil and defence opportunities. 

The UK took a forward-leaning approach to ISAM policies and regulations, enabling it to support pioneering missions. Notably, our ELSA-d mission, a first of its kind in-orbit demonstration of RPO which was licensed and operated from the UK - a significant technical milestone which established legal and regulatory precedents. In partnership with HMG, we shaped regulatory and policy frameworks, positioning the UK as a leader in this strategically critical area.

The announcement of the UK ADR mission was a vital and welcome step and has continued to put the UK ahead of other nations. However, international competition is increasing. Italy and France, for instance, have an increasing focus on ISAM, alongside major players like the US and China. Notably, the US passed the Orbit Sustainability Act in 2023 directing NASA to establish an ADR programme. The UK risks losing its competitive advantage within two to three years unless it maintains momentum. Working alongside industry, HMG should consider the next phase of development. This includes identifying and funding high-impact missions that will progress regulations, advance technologies, support growth and accelerate leadership across the ISAM value chain.

At present, the UK’s space strategy risks being stretched too thin, seeking to support a wide array of activities, often with limited funding. Our concern is that this approach dilutes impact, with too little support reaching high-potential companies capable of delivering step-change capabilities. HMG must refine its focus and double down on areas, such as ISAM, where the UK is uniquely positioned to lead. Doing so means concentrating support, funding and strategic backing, on the companies operating in these priority domains. A targeted approach will ensure the UK builds depth and leadership in key capabilities. National flagship missions and continued investment in ESA programmes, where the UK industry is enabled to lead, must be central to this strategy.

With the ESA Council of Ministers taking place in November 2025, where the next three-year budgets will be agreed, HMG must take a leadership position on key ESA programmes that align with its own strategic priorities, including ISAM. As a lead contributor, the UK can secure significant geo-return benefits, ensuring UK-based companies are well-positioned to lead and deliver. Should HMG not take a leading role, however unlikely, we risk ceding ground to other nations who will not hesitate to capitalise on this opportunity.

There is a significant opportunity for the UK to leverage dual-use technologies, maximising available budgets while strengthening sovereign solutions. Increasingly, adversaries are performing actions or manoeuvres in space that exploit known coverage gaps in surveillance and tracking capabilities, such as the limitations of traditional, ground-based SDA sensors which are unable to effectively monitor them. This contributes to the overall threat landscape which HMG operates in and provides an increasing need to develop and field new capabilities to mitigate against threats which could impact mission requirements - this is driving the need for space-SDA and Space Control capabilities within Defence.

The UK has novel and available sovereign technologies that can counter these threats, with further innovations required. Astroscale’s RPO technology, developed alongside RPO enabled platforms, provides the ability to manoeuvrer rapidly and regularly without regret. This sovereign capability is one solution to the growing demand for space-based SDA services, enabling attribution, intelligence gathering, and rapid response. Capitalising on these strengths would position the UK at the forefront of allied SDA efforts. Failing to invest in this critical area risks leaving UK space capabilities behind those of international competitors and introduces strategic vulnerabilities with direct national security implications.

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

The key opportunities and challenges for space-related businesses in the UK often stem from the same issues: access to funding, international competition, and regulations. In the Defence sector, SMEs continue to face barriers to entry around procurement and early engagement with HMG.

From a funding perspective the UKSA’s budget should move to multi-year funding cycles, providing businesses with long-term certainty of programmes, the ability to plan accordingly, and grow capability and capacity. This would also create a deeper public-private partnership with the ability to commit to longer-term programmes whilst staying at the forefront of global innovation. When funding gaps appear, it can create challenges for businesses, particularly SMEs, as long-term certainty disappears. We hope the ongoing Spending Review will enable a longer funding cycle, particularly with the Labour Party’s 2024 pre-election commitment to “scrap short funding cycles for key R&D institutions in favour of ten-year budgets.”

Funding is one part; equally important are the signals HMG sends about its strategic priorities. The UK ADR Mission was a strong sign of support for the ISAM market, but, as mentioned above, we need to know what is next. A sustained, long-term strategy, backed by further national missions and ESA programmes, will help technology advance rapidly and the cost of doing business will start to fall.

Industry has an important role in supporting UKSA as a customer, particularly during early stages of market development. The UK ADR mission is the first of its kind funded by the UKSA, marking a significant step forward. However, we feel there have been challenges in navigating the complex legislative framework surrounding the public procurement of space activities - the Procurement Act 2023 should streamline the process. While this development is positive, HMG must invest in the necessary skills and expertise to navigate the framework effectively. As the space market matures, public sector investment will drive initial growth, but it is equally important that procurement processes are clear and well-managed, enabling a competitive environment that attracts innovation and drives the sector forward. We have seen other space agencies succeed at this model, such as NASA who is a customer alongside its R&D programmes.

Legislation and regulations must align with HMG’s strategic priorities, to support the sector’s growth and development. While HMG has demonstrated world-leading progress for RPO mission types, further legal and regulatory challenges remain for space-based businesses. The UK’s flexible legislative framework can create challenges. Sustainability is a good example: legislation is flexible regarding space sustainability-related licensing requirements on both regulator and operator; more prescriptive requirements would ensure businesses align with HMG expectations and facilitate clearer pathways for compliance.

The Space Industry Act presents further challenges. It was primarily designed for launch activities, creating challenges for operators of other space activities to navigate the requirements. A key example is the security requirements placed on “space sites.” The regulations are reasonable for launch sites but become complex and burdensome when applied to non-launch sites – such as. Astroscale’s Mission Control Centre at Harwell. The Act and subsequent regulations, impose requirements not suited to the specific needs of non-launch facilities and currently, regulators are unable to waive requirements.

Although the UK has a robust legislative framework, it can be complex to navigate, particularly for novel and innovative missions such as ISAM. As the sector grows, regulations must evolve and adapt to the new requirements – the Department of Science, Innovation, and Technology has started to address this through a series of Regulatory Sandboxes to identify key gaps in current legislative framework – we welcomed involvement with the RPO Sandbox which recently shared its recommendations with HMG. This was a welcome step to help simplify and streamline licencing and regulatory process, but we must ensure that the recommendations are taken forward – many of which likely require an amendment via statutory instrument to introduce additional definitions, sub-categories and adjustments to address emerging market needs.  

We would also recommend the consolidation of the Outer Space Act 1986 (space activities carried out by UK national overseas) and the Space Industry Act 2018 (spaceflight activities carried out in the UK). Maintaining two legislative regimes adds complexity and duplication. In many instances, operators are required to procure a licence under each Act. Consolidating them into one statute would create a single point of reference for operators, make the framework more accessible, streamline compliance and lower the administrative burden for innovative businesses.

Turning to scale-up, Astroscale is one of the UK’s success stories, growing from a workforce of 5 in 2017 to nearly 250 today. Despite this growth, we continue to face challenges in scaling further, and as an SME, we found barriers when first accessing Defence. These obstacles risk slowing the development of sovereign capability or risk outsourcing it to allies and importing. The strength of the UK’s space sector lies in its SMEs and their capacity for innovation. Harnessing this potential is vital to delivering economic security and HMG’s broader growth mission.

We would encourage the Ministry of Defence (MoD), to work cross-Government to review its support for SMEs entering the Defence market, where access to contracts becomes increasingly difficult. The barriers we see are around the entry routes for contracts - for space alone there are between 10-20 frameworks with different access criteria (e.g. ASTRID, Future Labs, Serapis). Alongside this are challenges to access secure facilities, personal security clearances and understanding how MoD operates more broadly. Whilst larger companies say there are no concerns, the voice of SMEs must be listened to. If access requirements become too burdensome these innovative companies may look to other markets with more accessible structures.

Given that the challenges outlined above span multiple areas of HMG, and the growing strategic and economic significance of the UK space sector, there is a clear need for a central senior voice supporting this. In other sectors, past governments have appointed a ‘Tsar’ or ‘Champion,’ a visible, empowered figure to drive cross-government coordination. Appointing a Space Tsar/Champion would signal the UK’s serious intent to lead this domain, provide consistent and focused leadership across Whitehall, and act as a vocal advocate for UK space on the international stage.

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

The UK’s main international civil space partnership is with ESA. As previously mentioned, the UK must play an active role leading ESA programmes, not only to support growth of its domestic sector, but also to maintain the competitive edge it has built in key capability areas. Alongside ESA, HMG must discuss access to European Union Space programmes in its continuing dialogue with the EU. We have seen challenges with participation in European Innovation Council Pathfinder programmes that could risk us being unable to support future EU Space programmes.

shifting geopolitical dynamics have led many nations to reassess long-standing partnerships and take steps to diversify their collaborations and supply chains. This is increasingly seen as essential to ensuring long-term freedom of action in space. The UK is well-positioned to lead in fostering collaboration amongst trusted allies and should seek to play an influential role in strategic partnerships such as NATO and Five Eyes. HMG must maintain its regulatory leadership and support companies that provide a competitive advantage to the UK as a nation.

A strong example of the UK’s leadership in international collaboration is an arrangement established between the UKSA and the New Zealand Space Agency to facilitate ADR and ISAM missions. This serves as a model for future bilateral and multilateral agreements or arrangements and demonstrates the UK’s ability to shape the global legal and regulatory framework for ISAM.

Astroscale is actively working with the UKSA and wider HMG stakeholders to identify and build partnerships with states whose space objects may be serviced through multijurisdictional missions. Through bilateral or multilateral demonstration missions, the UK can drive the development of ISAM capabilities, and the international legal principles needed to underpin them, ensuring compliance with international law while cementing the UK’s leadership in this area.

Astroscale is uniquely positioned to support international partnerships through state and commercial actors given our global presence – whilst working within Astroscale we have demonstrated the ability to support a Japanese mission (though JAXA and Astroscale Japan) by providing ground segment and flight dynamics support for ADRAS-J from our Harwell facility.

The importance of the provision of a safe operating environment in space, and how the UK can contribute to this, in particular regarding space weather and space debris.

NASA data indicates that space debris reaches Earth’s surface nearly every day, with several recorded incidents of damage to ground infrastructure, increasing the risk of ground casualties, and disruption to flight patterns and temporary closures of airspaces around the world. Whilst ESA’s own data, from March 2025, states there are over 14,000 satellites orbiting Earth and nearly 3,000 already failed - the number of defunct objects is growing rapidly.

Considering the current state of the space orbital environment, even with high post-mission disposal rates, several failed objects must be actively removed each year to preserve the long-term sustainability of the space environment. In the second half of 2024 alone, Space X reported 50,000 collision avoidance manoeuvrers, highlighting the severity of orbital congestion and operation risk. These potential collisions could result in a significant national and economic security situation for the UK and many other nations.

Space-based services underpin around 20% of the UK’s GDP, providing essential support to critical civil and defence sectors. This interdependence makes it vital that HMG prioritises the safety and sustainability of space activities. There is growing recognition across HMG, including UKSA and UK Space Command, of the need to act. Given the strategic value of space, space sustainability should be classed as a public service, forming part of the Government’s role to protect critical national infrastructure in orbit.

We have previously said, the UK ADR Mission is an important first step in maturing ISAM technology and discussed how the UK can contribute to this through a longer-term strategy. However, alongside this it must continue its leadership through partnerships, including ESA’s Space Safety Programme, and further missions must build on this foundation to solidify the UK’s global leadership in space safety and sustainability.

At present, there is uncertainty around the legal status and applicability of various international space debris mitigation guidelines, and a lack of clarity about how the UK interprets its international obligations relating to sustainability. To ensure regulatory certainty and transparency, we encourage HMG to continue working with industry to develop clear quantitative and qualitative criteria, based on international best practices, that will guide both safety and sustainability assessments during licensing.

Defence must also respond to the escalating congestion of space. New capabilities must be developed with space safety and sustainability in mind, avoiding the creation of space debris, and embracing ISAM technologies to maintain a long-term sustainable operational environment. Space sustainability must also be seen through the lens of the impact of adversary developments in satellite technologies that threaten our safe operations in space. This ranges from the simple jamming of transponders through to the potential co-orbital Anti-Satellite capabilities that may result in the temporary or permanent loss of capability.

The development of international space law and regulation.

The development of international space law and regulation is critical to enabling a safe, secure, and sustainable space environment. UK should ensure that its strategic priorities are consistently represented and advanced in key international fora, including the United Nations and other multilateral platforms. Continued engagement will also ensure that its domestic space efforts are aligned with global initiatives, particularly those related to space safety and sustainability.

From Astroscale’s point of view, the UK has good engagement on the international stage, including active participation in United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (UN COPUOS). However, the UK could be more forward leaning in these forums, particularly championing areas such as space sustainability where there is a link to its own national priority. The UK’s role in the development of the UN Long-Term Sustainability Guidelines is a precedent for how it could lead and shape international consensus on responsible behaviour in space.

The UK actively engages across many other international committees, such as the Inter-Agency Space Debris Coordination Committee which it currently Chairs, the Open-Ended Working Group (OEWG) on the Prevention of an Arms Race in Outer Space (PAROS) to name a few. Our only request here is where possible, consult industry to help formulate the UK’s position. This engagement would ensure that the UK’s contributions are aligned not only with HMG’s objectives but also with the practical needs and priorities of industry.

Finally, another notable area of concern is the UK’s representation at the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), particularly during the World Radiocommunication Conferences (WRC), which take place every three to four years with agenda items locked in years in advance. The WRC will revise Radio Regulations, an international treaty that governs the use of radio-frequency spectrum and satellite orbits. Given the centrality of spectrum access to all space activities, including RPO and ISAM missions, it is critical that the UK’s engagement through Ofcom is strategically aligned with the evolving needs of the UK space sector. It risks creating challenges for emerging technologies to secure spectrum access in a timely manner, which can introduce significant delays and uncertainty for operators and investors. A clear roadmap for engagement to ensure priorities are represented and pursued at future WRC agenda items, will help ensure that UK-based companies are not disadvantaged on the global stage and that critical technologies are not left behind due to regulatory lag.

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

Space is, by its nature, a global industry, and for UK companies to remain competitive in the international stage, they must be able to access and attract talent to support the development of cutting-edge technologies and capabilities. Astroscale has been broadly successful in its recruitment efforts, but this is often through importing skills from outside the UK. The UK must continue to invest in, its domestic pipeline of professionals with the technical and specialist skills needed to meet the increasing demand across the space sector. We continue to see challenges in areas like electronics applied to space (Power and Command and Data Handling), as well as Ground Segment systems, and Mission Operations where the UK has not had an extensive capability.  As the UK develops sovereign based capabilities across defence and civil space, there is a critical need to grow UK based skills – particularly as the global market grows.

However, supporting early careers and work experience opportunities is also a challenge for smaller organisations, but internships offered through Space Placements in Industry (SPIN) were valuable to us as an employer and for incoming early professionals. Unfortunately, due to uncertainty around funding whilst the Spending Review is ongoing, there has been significant drop in the number of opportunities for 2025, as companies must fund their own internships where they have previously been UKSA funded. Given the importance of these roles to the UK Space sector, when funding challenges occur, there must be a discussion between Industry and Government (who both benefit from these placements) to see what we can do to continue supporting new entrants to the sector.

At Astroscale, our graduate scheme has been a great success for us. The first intake was 13 graduates, between 5-10% of our workforce at the time, all of whom are still with the business, and rolling off into engineering roles, and a second intake undergoing recruitment aiming for another 10 positions. We must ensure, as a sector, that early career opportunities exist to expand the skills base at the entry level and develop much expertise that is required.

Visibility is also key, and we must work together to ensure the opportunities are understood. We would encourage Government and Industry to run a campaign to highlight the roles and careers that exist within the sector – like recent campaigns around careers in cybersecurity, and the recent RAF campaigns which highlight their involvement in space work. 

On the education piece, the most common route into engineering roles in the space sector is through a traditional/taught degree route. We have seen discussions around the need to develop apprenticeship standards and some progress has been made, but the standards are not well known or broadly supported. We recommend Government works with industry to encourage broader input into these standards, along with wider and faster production of them. 

We also encourage the UKSA to consider running it’s ‘Training Programmes Fund’ initiative again, supporting skills transfer between sectors and help upskilling in new domains. Initial uptake was limited – perhaps due to a short timeline in advance of information being shared, as well as a short turnaround to be able to define an offering, get a cohort through, and measure the impact of the training. Should there have been a longer lead time for a learning programme, this could give education providers (and employers) the chance to develop something broader for the sector and hopefully begin to target upstream skills.

The impact of space on national security and resilience.

Space is becoming an increasingly contested domain for supremacy, with rising threats to both civil and defence operations given the increasing movements of adversaries. It has never been more important for the UK to understand what is happening in-orbit, how adversaries are acting, and how UK assets could be threatened through, for example, hacking, interference of another type of threat vector. The development of an interoperable SDA architecture is essential to support this effort. The UK also requires the need for adequate Space Control capabilities to assure access and freedom of action in space for future generations.

A good example of the vulnerabilities we currently face is the increasing report of adversaries performing actions which could be perceived as threatening. When you look at how core UK assets are protected across the other war-fighting domains, they are supported by a fleet that provides not just additional security requirements but also operational and servicing support. When the Royal Navy’s carriers are operational, they will not be alone but supported by a fleet that looks after its needs. In contrast, Skynet, a programme of strategic national import and with a similar price tag (£6bn), is currently isolated in space with minimal protection against the breath of potential threat vectors, creating a strong vulnerability in our national security.

Finally, the existing legislative framework in the UK includes provisions that ensure the regulator is satisfied that any proposed space activity does not impair national security. This is a crucial aspect of the assessment for any space mission, ensuring that activities comply with the UK's international obligations and align with national interests.

Conclusion

In conclusion, as novel markets emerge the UK must seize the opportunity to take advantage of them, but to do so it must ensure it has a robust strategy focusing on areas where there is a pre-existing competitive advantage.

The UK must continue its international leadership within ISAM, from maturing high-potential companies to its forward leaning approach to domestic and global policies and regulations. C National missions like UK ADR and leadership of international programmes with ESA help the UK maintain this lead but should also use the growing global demand of this sector as an excuse to secure its lead and provide a long-term strategy to develop its priority areas. To achieve this, a strong business environment is key – from breaking down barriers for business, and particularly SMEs, to investing in a strong skills base. We see this growth as a partnership between industry and HMG, which must be reflected through continued consultations and discussions.

The economic and national security challenges within space are only going to increase – being at the forefront of sectors like ISAM that provide real solutions, now, will help close gaps in our own vulnerabilities whilst also positioning the UK to take an international position as a leading figure in both strategic geo-political, policy and regulatory discussions.

16 April 2025