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EU aims to create a competitive single market for space services

2025-06-25 18:53:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

The initiative comes at a time when Europe risks falling further behind global competitors such as the US and China. It will apply to EU and non-EU operators, excluding military activities, and provides support for small and medium-sized enterprises.

The EU Commission aims to create a competitive single market for space services and data by cutting red tape, protecting space assets and ensuring a level playing field for all businesses, in a new EU Space Act proposed on Wednesday.

“The Space Act will allow us to grow in space,” EU Commissioner for Defence and Space, Andrius Kubilius, told reporters. “Growth in space means growth and jobs on Earth and in space,” he added.

The regulation also aims to address Europe's fragmented space rules by harmonizing national measures to make the bloc's space market cleaner, safer and more resilient.

"This fragmentation is bad for business, bad for competitiveness, bad for our future in space," Kubilius argued, emphasizing that Europe wants a stronger role in the global space economy.

In 2023, the global space economy was valued at 572 billion euros and is expected to grow by around 9% per year until 2035, potentially reaching 1.6 trillion euros.

However, until now, the space market has depended mainly on public investments and institutional programs, an area where Europe risks falling behind.

According to the European Space Agency (ESA), Europe accounted for 11% of global public space funding in 2023 (12 billion euros), while the US contributed 64% (over 65 billion euros) and China 12%.

Europe's share of global private investment follows a similar pattern, with European investments totaling €980 million compared to €3.6 billion invested by the US.

To support the development of Europe's industrial and economic presence in space, the EU executive on Wednesday also presented "A Vision for the European Space Economy," a communication outlining 40 proposed measures aimed at helping the bloc expand its participation in the global space market.

“European industry, although highly competitive, can only capture one-third of the accessible upstream market and one-fifth of the downstream market,” a senior EU official said ahead of the proposal.

The space economy is usually divided into three main areas: the upstream segment, which covers research, development, production and launches; the downstream segment, focused on applications that use space-based technologies; and a derived market, which includes all economic activities that benefit from space advances, such as photovoltaic panels.

Kubilius also warned that space is becoming increasingly congested and contested. “It is time to establish rules of the road for space to prevent damage and disasters and to protect space services,” he said.

Over the next decade, around 50,000 new satellites and around 140 million pieces of debris will enter orbit, according to EU figures.

Space assets are increasingly exposed to threats, both intentional and accidental. Kubilius noted the rise of cyber and physical risks.

"We know there is constant radio frequency interference in our systems, jamming and spoofing. We know there are a lot of cyber attacks. So, with our Space Act, we will increase the resiliency of our satellites and space operations," he said.

If adopted, the regulation will apply to EU and national space assets, as well as to non-EU operators providing services on the European market. However, it will not cover military activities.

To ease the transition, the Commission plans to provide support to help businesses - especially small and medium-sized enterprises - manage any costs associated with compliance.

MEP Christophe Grudler (FR/REN), co-chair of Parliament's cross-sectoral group on sky and space, welcomed the proposal as an important first step towards building an EU-scale space industry. "This, together with the future EU Space Programme, will put the EU in orbit for the global space race," he said in a press release.

The Space Act also includes steps to increase the EU's presence in the satellite launcher market, which is currently dominated by Elon Musk's SpaceX. One measure would make a single launch authorisation valid across the EU.

"This is a strong signal to encourage innovation and strengthen the competitiveness of the European space sector, which we want to see grow," concluded Grudler./ CNA