CHENNAI: The launch of a rocket from the country’s first privately-owned launchpad has been postponed due to a technical issue, the company said on Thursday.
On Friday, Agnikul Cosmos Private Limited’s Agnibaan was slated to launch from the company-owned launchpad at Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) located inside Indian Space Research Organisation’s (ISRO) facility at Sriharikota.
“Agnikul is holding the launch out of an abundance of caution based on certain minor observations from the full countdown rehearsals last night,” it said in a statement. The company will announce a new date and time for the launch. The IIT-Madras incubated start-up is 3-D printing its space vehicle - Agnibaan, with single piece 3D-printed engine.
This launch, Sub Orbital Technology Demonstrator (SOrTeD), was aimed at testing technical capabilities. It is building custom launch vehicles for small and nano satellites to low earth orbits (LEO) called Agnibaan. This was planned as the first launch from its spaceport, following which the company will start commercial operations.
This would have been a significant feat for the private space companies in India after opening up and liberalisation of the sector, previously restricted only to the premier space research agency, ISRO. Apart from being the first private launchpad, it would have been India’s first semi-cryogenic engine powered rocket launch and world’s first single piece 3D printed engine, according to claims of the company.
The start-up has so far raised $41 million in four rounds. As the demand for small satellite launches increases, Agnikul focuses on-demand launches for small satellites. Market for smaller sats are growing at 17.3% CAGR and may touch $9 billion by 2030, according to various market research reports.
Applications of these are primarily in the communication and earth observation with scores of companies eyes launched for direct telecommunication like sat phones, internet of things (IoT) applications and imaging.