The EU Commission is aiming to create a competitive single market for space services and data by cutting red tape, protecting space assets and ensuring a level playing field for all businesses, in a new EU Space Act proposed on Wednesday.
“The Space Act will allow us to grow in space,” EU Commissioner for Defence and Space Andrius Kubilius told reporters. “Growth in space means growth and jobs on Earth and in space,” he added.
The regulation also seeks to address Europe’s fragmented space rules by harmonising national measures to make the bloc’s space market cleaner, safer, and more resilient.
“This fragmentation is bad for business, bad for competitiveness, bad for our future in space,” Kubilius argued, stressing that Europe wants a stronger stake in the global space economy.
In 2023, the global space economy was valued at €572 billion and is expected to grow by around 9% annually until 2035, potentially reaching €1.6 trillion.
So far, however, the space market has largely depended on public investment and institutional programmes—areas where Europe risks falling behind.
According to the European Space Agency (ESA), Europe accounted for 11% of global public space funding in 2023 (€12 billion), while the US contributed 64% (over €65 billion) and China 12%.
Europe’s share of global private investment follows a similar pattern, with European investments totalling €980 million compared to the €3.6 billion invested by the US.
To support the development of Europe’s industrial and economic presence in space, the EU executive also presented on Wednesday “A Vision for the European Space Economy,” a communication outlining 40 proposed measures intended to help the bloc expand its participation in the global space market.
Space increasingly ‘congested and contested’, says Kubilius
“The European industry, although very competitive, can only capture one third of the accessible upstream market and one fifth of the downstream market,” a senior EU official said ahead of the proposal.
The space economy is typically divided into three key areas: the upstream segment, which covers research, development, manufacturing, and launches; the downstream segment, focused on applications using space-based technologies; and a derived market, which includes all economic activities benefiting from space advancements, such as photovoltaic panels.
Kubilius also warned that space is becoming increasingly congested and contested. “It’s time to put in place rules of the road for space to prevent damage and disasters and protect space services,” he said.
Over the next decade, an estimated 50,000 new satellites and around 140 million pieces of debris will enter orbit, according to EU figures.
Space assets are increasingly exposed to threats, both intentional and accidental. Kubilius pointed to rising cyber and physical risks.
“We know there is continuous radio-frequency interference with our systems, jamming, and spoofing. We know there are many cyberattacks. So, with our Space Act, we will increase the resilience of our satellites and space operations,” he said.
If adopted, the regulation would apply to EU and national space assets, as well as non-EU operators providing services in the European market. However, it would not cover military activities.
To ease the transition, the Commission plans to provide support to help businesses—especially small and medium-sized enterprises—manage any costs tied to compliance.
MEP Christophe Grudler (France/Renew), co-chair of the Parliament’s intergroup on sky and space, welcomed the proposal as an important first step toward building a space industry on an EU scale. “This, together with the upcoming EU Space Programme, will set the EU into orbit for the global space race,” he said in a press release.
The Space Act also includes steps to boost the EU’s presence in the satellite launcher market, which is currently dominated by Elon Musk’s SpaceX. One measure would make a single launch authorisation valid across the entire EU.
“This is a strong signal to encourage innovation and strengthen the competitiveness of the European space sector, which we want to see grow,” Grudler concluded.