ISRO earns $279 million in forex through satellite launches

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), through its commercial arms, has earned $279 million in foreign exchange by launching satellites for global clients, Union Minister Jitendra Singh told the Lok Sabha on Wednesday.

In a written reply to a question, Singh said ISRO, in association with its commercial arms, has successfully launched 345 foreign satellites from 34 countries on-board Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV).

“Total foreign exchange revenue earned through launching of foreign satellites amounts to $56 million and €220 million approximately,” Singh said, without mentioning any time-frame for such launches.

As per current exchange rates, €220 million are equivalent to $223 million.

The latest PSLV mission was on June 30 when ISRO’s warhorse launch vehicle placed three Singaporean satellites into orbit.

PSLV-C53 mission by ISRO, successfully launched three Singapore customer satellites namely DS-EO, NeuSAR, and SCOOB-1.

The PSLV-C53 was the second dedicated commercial mission for NewSpace India Limited (NSIL), a Central Public Sector Enterprise under administrative control of the Department of Space (DOS), Singh said. PTI