Plan-S Launches Four New Satellites Into Space

The space competition that once existed between states in the past has transformed into a race in which private companies now take centre stage. Leading with the United States, Turkish companies have begun to join the growing space technology competition in Western countries. Recently, the domestic space venture Plan-S, which sent IoT satellites to space, aims to increase its technological capacity through a funding round it has launched.

As work and competition in space technologies increase, the space industry continues to grow steadily. According to Space Foundation data, the global space economy was worth USD 570 billion in 2023, with the private sector accounting for 78%. Companies from around the world seeking a share of this large pie are accelerating their efforts. In his statement, Sami Aslanhan, Chairman of the Board of Plan-S, the domestic space venture whose first four satellites of its constellation providing IoT communication services were launched from Vandenberg Space Base in recent weeks, noted that the five satellites launched for testing purposes were used to develop satellite subsystems and gain flight heritage. Aslanhan stated, "We sent our first satellite in 2022 and learned and experimented with many things on these five satellites. Today we have placed our four Connecta IoT satellites that will provide commercial service into their orbits in space and are now ready to provide service."

"Our target includes more than 200 satellites"

Sami Aslanhan said, "Plan-S, a leading satellite and space technologies company in Turkey, was established in Ankara in July 2021. Despite being only a 3-year-old company, we have achieved great successes in a short period. However, it must be acknowledged that working in space technologies is costly and requires a long-term discipline at the same time. Currently we have 120 employees and 70% of this team works in engineering and technology fields. Our team consists of engineers with high experience in defence, aviation and space sectors as well as very talented young engineers. We carry out the entire design, production, testing and integration processes of the satellites we develop within our own premises. With our working facilities suitable for space missions, we manage almost all of the production processes within the institution. We have test equipment, laboratories and clean rooms that can simulate the space environment and conduct work suitable for critical space missions. Establishing and managing this infrastructure requires considerable experience and dedication."

Plan-S Chairman of the Board Sami Aslanhan, providing information about the funding round they have launched, said, "We have launched a capital fund round at a USD 400 million valuation. Under this scope, we aim to raise USD 40 million in investments from a single-asset fund offered by Ziraat Bankası's investment arm as well as from institutional and individual investors in Turkey and abroad. These investments will be used to expand our Connecta IoT and Observa satellite constellations, develop very high-resolution mission payloads, research and development in remote sensing and 5G/6G non-terrestrial network technologies, as well as opening up to international markets in IoT and earth observation services."

Noting that these first four satellites of the Connecta IoT constellation, which will number more than 200 in the near future, will be able to provide service to any location on Earth, Aslanhan said, "We will provide low-latency communication services. We have signed many contracts for launches in 2025, 2026 and 2027. Following these four satellites, we planned to send 4 satellites in October of this year, then an additional 4 satellites at the beginning of 2025, followed by 8-satellite and 16-satellite launches."

Priority is Turkey and Turkic Republics

Providing information about business plans, Sami Aslanhan said, "We plan to launch our IoT communication services prioritising Turkey and Turkic Republics. Immediately after, we aim to expand our service network by including the Gulf Region, Africa, Asia Pacific and European countries. Soon we will start providing services in various applications targeting the energy, agriculture, logistics, mining, maritime transport and finance sectors in these countries. In the short and medium term, we aim to incorporate new technologies into our IoT communication services. After that, our goal will be to bring 5G/6G technologies to space and provide communication services via satellites to every part of the world. In the field of earth observation and remote sensing, we also aim to serve many sectors with our very high-resolution mission payloads and satellite constellation and make satellite imagery usable in people's daily lives."

"The state should support this field through grants and incentives"

Plan-S Chairman of the Board Sami Aslanhan said, "The global space economy is expected to reach USD 1.8 trillion in 2035. The competition in this huge market is equally fierce and ruthless. This is because space technologies require high entry capital. For this reason, as Plan-S, in addition to the equity capital from our investor companies, we decided to launch a capital round. The new investment we will obtain will provide significant benefit in accelerating our current technology and gaining a larger share in the global market."

Sami Aslanhan said, "While there are various grants and supports for technology, these supports are quite limited in the space field. As Plan-S, compared to other players in the sector, we do not think we are behind in terms of technology, knowledge accumulation and experience. However, the sector in which we work needs to be supported with grants, incentives and investments. Compared to us, sector players in the United States and Europe are currently in a more advantageous position in this regard. We should also support ventures that will have a say on the space stage without missing this train" he concluded.