"Pixxel Inaugurates New Spacecraft Manufacturing Facility in Bengaluru"

Pixxel, the Bengaluru-based space data company, celebrated the grand opening of its inaugural spacecraft manufacturing facility in Bengaluru on Monday, marking a significant stride in its mission to deploy a "health monitor" for Earth. The newly established facility assumes great importance as Pixxel aims to launch six satellites in the current year, with plans to deploy an additional 18 by 2025.

Spanning an impressive 30,000 square feet, the facility, at maximum capacity, is capable of handling more than 20 satellites simultaneously, with a remarkable turnaround time of six months. This operational efficiency positions Pixxel to produce a total of 40 large satellites per year.

S. Somanath, Chairman of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), inaugurated the facility and commended Pixxel for its vision and sustained efforts over the last five years. He acknowledged the challenges of the space sector and lauded Pixxel for making a significant impact with determination, resilience, and perseverance.

Pixxel has already launched three satellites—Shakuntala, D2, and Anand—in collaboration with ISRO and Elon Musk's SpaceX. The startup is set to launch Firefly, a constellation comprising six high-resolution hyperspectral satellites, in June, followed by the Honeybees constellation to enhance image resolution and wavelength range.

Awais Ahmed, CEO of Pixxel, expressed the significance of the facility's inauguration, coinciding with the company's fifth anniversary since inception. He emphasized that the expanded satellite production capacity aligns with Pixxel's mission to provide critical data for industries such as agriculture, energy, forestry, and environmental monitoring.

Pixxel plans to launch its geospatial analytics platform, Aurora, by June 2024, enhancing its capabilities in environmental, agricultural, and mining sectors. The company has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Ministry of Agriculture to provide hyperspectral imagery. With 98% of its customers being global, including major names like British Petroleum, Google, and the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO), Pixxel is poised for substantial growth.

In terms of its customer base, Pixxel envisions 85% of its revenue coming from the commercial sector and the remaining 15% from the government side by 2025. The company's focus on technological innovation and global partnerships positions it as a key player in the space data industry.

BS