Innospace Selects Azores as European Launch Base

Our Bureau - : Jan 9, 2026 - : 4:28 am

South Korean launch services company Innospace has secured its first European launch base after signing a multi-launch site agreement with the Atlantic Spaceport Consortium (ASC), selecting Santa Maria in Portugal’s Azores as a long-term operational hub. The agreement grants Innospace...

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The agreement grants Innospace priority access to the Malbusca Launch Center on Santa Maria Island for a five-year period beginning in 2026. The company plans to develop launch pads, mission control systems and test infrastructure in stages, with its first commercial launch from the site targeted for the fourth quarter of 2026.

Expanding a Distributed Global Launch Network

The Azores agreement comes just weeks after Innospace signed a separate launch facility deal with Southern Launch, enabling missions from South Australia. Together with earlier expansion into Brazil, the move extends the company’s launch footprint across South America, Oceania and Europe.

Innospace said the geographically distributed network is designed to give customers greater flexibility in selecting launch locations and orbital profiles, particularly for small satellite missions with specific inclination and deployment requirements.

Strategic Advantages

Located in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, the Malbusca Launch Center offers island-based operations with a high degree of independence in surrounding airspace and maritime zones. Open launch corridors over the Atlantic allow for a broad range of orbital insertion scenarios, reducing operational constraints typically associated with mainland sites.

The company said these characteristics would allow more efficient mission planning and support customised launch solutions aligned with customer timelines and payload needs.

Regulatory Backing and Operational Support

ASC is jointly formed by OPTIMAL Structural Solutions, which specialises in metal and composite structural design and maintenance, and ilex Space, responsible for commercial and operational strategy. The consortium operates Malbusca with formal approval from the Regional Government of the Azores and the Portuguese government, alongside institutional support from the Portuguese Space Agency.

Innospace said working with a spaceport operator embedded within Portugal’s regulatory framework would help reduce licensing and operational risk, while improving schedule reliability as the company ramps up commercial launch services in Europe.

A Growing European Launch Hub

Bruno Carvalho, chief executive of the Atlantic Spaceport Consortium, said the partnership reflects a shared commitment to developing open and accessible launch infrastructure in Europe.

“Partnering with Innospace as its European launch base is deeply meaningful for us,” Carvalho said. “This collaboration aligns closely with our vision of an open spaceport, and we will provide full support to ensure stable and efficient launch operations from Santa Maria.”

Ricardo Conde, president of the Portuguese Space Agency, said Innospace’s decision underlined growing international confidence in Portugal’s space ambitions and would help accelerate the development of safe, sustainable and regulation-compliant orbital launch services from the Azores.

First European Launches Targeted for Late 2026

Innospace founder and chief executive Soojong Kim described the agreement as a milestone in the company’s global expansion strategy.

“Securing our first launch base in Europe, following Brazil and Australia, extends our global launch network into a truly intercontinental system,” Kim said. “By connecting South America, Oceania and Europe, we can offer flexible launch location and orbit selection tailored to each customer’s mission.”

Kim added that the island-based nature of the Azores site enhances operational independence in managing airspace and maritime safety zones, while supporting scalable commercial growth. Preparations are already under way to meet the target of a first commercial launch from Malbusca in late 2026.

Portugal / Innospace / Malbusca-launch-center / Azores /

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