The Columbia space shuttle, lost together with its crew on Saturday, was coming from another era, one might say: an era during which the state (American or Soviet) was the biggest consumer of rockets and satellites.
Originating in the '50s and grounded on military reasons or national prestige, the space industry is now mostly owned by private individuals and manages to earn money from an array of activities, from the traditional telecom satellite launch to funerals (an American company enables mourners to send the ashes of their loved ones to space...). Still, just like the space shuttle programme (which was halted for the duration of investigations, if not for good), the commercial space industry has hit an unprecedented slowdown.
According to an International Space Business Council report, the total revenues posted by the space industry plunged to 82.8 billion dollars in 2001, down from the 120 billion posted in 1999. Moreover, the excess launch capacity is estimated at 35% and still growing. The satellite production capacity also exceeds market demand by 50%. The optimistic outlook and the dotcom crash in the '90s are taking their revenge, now that the telecommunications companies have more billions in debts than they have orbiting satellites.
Paradoxically, the loss of the Columbia shuttle and the grounding of the other three shuttles could result in more government and military orders for the classic commercial launchers. On the other hand, the accident means less money - if not even lawsuits - for the companies handling the fleet's maintenance. The shuttles were built by Rockwell - now part of Boeing - and were maintained in cooperation with Lockheed Martin. The costs for a shuttle flight are estimated at 500 million dollars - hard to say whether this amount was in fact the profit of the two companies, which did use 6,400 employees only to operate the shuttles. Other companies could benefit from these circumstances: should NASA decide to drop the current shuttles, they will have to find a company to build the next generation (the Space Orbit Plane).
Space launches are risky and expensive. The Russians are leading the "economy class", with the lowest fee: 8 million dollars for a low orbit launch. The French, with Ariane 5, go up to 180 million dollars, but this money will also get you several tonnes in the geostationary orbit (simply perfect for TV broadcasts, up at 36,000 km). Of course, if you choose Ariane 5 insurance is recommended: the rocket exploded during the last flight, and, during the previous trip, the satellites it was carrying were put in the wrong orbits.
Pentru alte știri, analize, articole și informații din business în timp real urmărește Ziarul Financiar pe WhatsApp Channels
