The European space agency ESA starts in Brussels with a support program for Belgian space entrepreneurs. That writes the time on Friday. The news is also in L’Echo.
In the coming years, Brussels will be housing a Business Incubation Center (BIC), an ESA program to support start-ups that are active in space technology.
ESA already has such centers in more than twenty countries, together good for one of the largest incubation networks in Europe. In our country, the space organization works together with the Federal Government (Belspo), the Novaspace consultant and the Brussels start-up hub Becentral, where the BIC is officially housed. Flanders and Wallonia also had a BIC last decade, but they are no longer active.
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Entrepreneurs with an idea or a start-up around Spacetech can still submit their candidacy until 15 June. A jury with experts from Becentral and ESA makes a first selection at the beginning of July, after which the program can start in September. “Between 2025 and 2030 we want to guide 24 start-ups in a program that takes a maximum of two years. For this year we are aiming for 3 to 4 files,” says Charlène Crepel, the CEO of Becentral.
The participants may be active in hard and/or software. What space technology is exactly can be filled in broadly. The selected start-ups can count on 60,000 euros ‘free’ financing, paid in three drives that are linked to achieving certain interim objectives.