Irish companies signed European Space Agency (ESA) contracts with a total value of €24 million last year, a record figure and more than double the 2023 total, the Government has said.
On Wednesday, Enterprise Ireland and the Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment published the annual Space Activities in Ireland report.
It details the work that Irish companies are doing in the space sector in the context of the Government’s National Space Strategy, launched in 2019.
Some 116 companies have now secured contracts with the ESA since the strategy was launched, according to the report.
Last year, companies based in the Republic secured €24 million in contracts with the agency, up from €9.9 million in 2023.
The space technology market was estimated to be worth €436.69 billion in 2024, rising to €469.6 billion in 2026, according to the report, and is expected to grow to more than €896 billion through to 2034.
“The achievements of Irish companies in the European Space Agency over the past year demonstrate the extraordinary capability and ambition that exists across our space sector,” said Minister of State for Employment, Small Business and Retail Alan Dillon.
He said that “2024 was the most successful financial year yet for Irish space enterprises”, underlining “the return on Ireland’s investment in ESA and the value of international collaboration in driving innovation and sustainable growth”.
The report’s publication coincides with the ESA Council of Ministers taking place in Bremen, Germany, this week, with Mr Dillon leading the Irish delegation.
Jenny Melia, chief executive of Enterprise Ireland, said the indigenous space sector has seen “extraordinary growth” over the past decade, “from around 30 space-active companies to 116 today”.