French rocket builder Sirius Space Services has signed an agreement with Equatorial Launch Australia (ELA) to secure a launch facility at the company’s Arnhem Space Centre in Australia.
Sirius Space was founded in 2020 and is developing a range of three rockets that will be capable of delivering payloads of between 175 and 1,100 kilograms to low Earth orbit. The company’s larger Sirius 13 and Sirius 15 rockets are both designed to be partially reusable, with the latter featuring four recoverable strap-on boosters.
On 18 September, the company announced that it had concluded an agreement with ELA during World Space Business Week in Paris to secure its Australian launch facility. The company will take up residence at Arnhem Space Centre’s Launch Complex Number 3, which the company has renamed “Le Mans.”
According to Sirius Space, the flexibility to access a wide range of orbital inclinations was a crucial factor in its decision to select the Arnhem Space Centre for the launch of its rockets.
Construction of the Le Mans launch complex will begin in October 2024, with the company aiming to have the facility operational by the second half of 2025. The first launch of Sirius 1 on a ballistic flight will be conducted from the facility in 2026. The company’s larger Sirius 13 and Sirius 15 rockets will then both be debuted from the facility in 2027.
With the addition of a launch facility at the Guiana Space Centre, Sirius Space Services aims to launch up to 18 missions per year.
