Porsche parent invests in European rocket launch start-up

Porsche SE, the family holding company that controls Volkswagen, is investing in Munich-based rocket start-up Isar Aerospace in a bid to ensure access to new space-based technologies.

The company joins HV Capital and banking group Lombard Odier to inject $75m, bringing a total second-stage funding to $165m and valuing the group at an estimated $550m.

Isar is one of several European start-ups attempting to rival Elon Musk’s SpaceX and Jeff Bezos’s Blue Origin with low-cost satellite launch services to low-earth orbit.

“We are convinced that cost-effective and flexible access to space will be a key enabler for innovations in traditional industries as well as for new and disruptive technologies and business models,” said Lutz Meschke, the Porsche SE executive responsible for investment management.

Existing investors include Airbus Ventures, Earlybird Venture Capital and Lakestar. In total, the group has raised $180m since its foundation in 2018.

Isar is also set to make life more challenging for Europe’s launch company, Arianespace, which has been struggling with delays to its next-generation rocket, Ariane 6.

While substantially cheaper than previous generations of Ariane rockets, the latest launch version will still be more expensive than SpaceX’s reusable vehicle.

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