By Nivedita Bhattacharjee
BENGALURU (Reuters) – Indian space tech firm Digantara said on Tuesday it is targeting $25 million to $30 million in revenue over the next two years by expanding into the U.S., aiming to secure large-scale defense contracts and tap into the $60 billion space surveillance and intelligence market.
The Bengaluru-based startup plans to invest $10 million to $15 million over the next six to eight months to establish a spacecraft manufacturing and space optics production facility in Colorado, it said.
Dignatara also said it has signed contracts with multiple U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) agencies, including the U.S. Air Force and Space Force, but did not disclose further details.
The company recently launched its first space-based surveillance satellite aboard SpaceX’s Transporter-12 mission. Equipped with advanced electro-optical sensors, the satellite can track space objects as small as 5 cm in diameter.
Space traffic and debris management is an escalating concern for the global space industry, with low Earth orbit the most congested with human-made objects as it offers a balance between cost and proximity, making it a prime target for the rapidly growing commercial space sector.
More than 14,000 satellites, including some 3,500 inactive, surround the globe in low Earth orbit, data shows.
“At a time when space safety and security are more critical than ever, our expansion into the U.S., particularly Colorado, enables us to collaborate closely with key stakeholders and accelerate space surveillance capabilities,” said Anirudh Sharma, co-founder and CEO of Digantara.
(Reporting by Nivedita Bhattacharjee in Bengaluru; Editing by Varun H K)
