PLD Space, EIC Scaling Club members in the New Space market group, have closed a €180 million Series C equity funding round to accelerate industrial scale-up and expand their commercial footprint in Japan and the broader Asian market.
The significant round, led by Mitsubishi Electric Corporation as a strategic launch customer, also includes Spanish public and private backing:
- Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities, via the Centre for the Development of Technology and Innovation (CDTI) and its INNVIERTE fund
- COFIDES, through its FOCO investment fund
- Nazca Capital, through Nazca Aeroespacial y Defensa INNVIERTE I FCR
With this round, PLD Space reports over €350 million raised to date, reinforcing its ambition to become one of the few private companies globally developing complete launch systems and supporting sovereign, competitive access to space.
Why this funding matters
The new capital is designed to move PLD Space faster from development into commercial launch operations, scaling production and test capacity and expanding launch infrastructure across multiple locations.
PLD Space’s flagship orbital launcher, MIURA 5, is positioned for international demand, with the company indicating:
- first test flight in 2026; and
- an ambition to exceed 30 launches per year by 2030.
Commercial expansion in Japan and Asia
A central element of the announcement is the strategic partnership logic: PLD Space will provide Mitsubishi Electric with small satellite launch services using MIURA 5 for Japan and across the Asian region, supporting future satellite constellation deployment and strengthening market confidence beyond Europe. Ezequiel Sánchez, PLD Space’s Executive President, said:
“This financing reinforces our technological and industrial leadership in the launcher market, enabling us to execute the next phase of our strategic roadmap with the speed and scale required to compete globally. MIURA 5 was designed to address a clear and growing capacity gap in the market, and this investment support strengthens our ability to transition into commercial operations. It accelerates the build-out of the industrial and launch infrastructure required to deliver reliable access to space for an expanding pipeline of global customers.”
Tomonori Sato, Mitsubishi Electric’s Executive Officer, Group President, Defense & Space Systems said:
“We are pleased to collaborate with PLD Space, a company taking on the challenge of satellite launch services with a view toward the global market. By combining PLD Space’s launch capabilities with Mitsubishi Electric’s strengths in the satellite business, we aim to address evolving customer requirements, including those in the global market.”
Institutional backing and European momentum
The Spanish Minister of Science, Innovation and Universities, Diana Morant, underlined the strategic value of the project for Spain and Europe:
“The closing of this series consolidates a strategic project with global impact born in our country, reinforcing Spain’s key position within the space economy. The Spanish Government has backed PLD Space’s growth plans, because investing in space means investing in technological sovereignty, strategic autonomy and qualified employment generation.”
About the EIC Scaling Club
The EIC Scaling Club is a curated community where 120 European deep tech scale-ups with the potential to build world-class businesses and solve major global challenges come together with investors, corporate innovators and other industry stakeholders to spur growth.
The top 120 European deep tech companies have been carefully selected from a pool of high-growth scale-ups that have benefitted from EIC financial schemes, other European and national innovation programmes, and beyond.
The EIC Scaling Club is an EIC-funded initiative run in partnership by Tech Tour, Bpifrance (EuroQuity), Hello Tomorrow, Tech.eu (Webrazzi), EurA and IESE Business School.
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