Moray based Orbex have announced their intention to focus launch efforts at Saxavord Spaceport in Shetland. They leased the 13 acre Sutherland site from Highlands and Islands Enterprises (HIE) in 2022. Sutherland Spaceport had come up against fierce opposition from one of it’s neighbours, Anders Holch Povlsen (the founder of clothing retailer ASOS and the largest individual land owner in the UK). Anders is invested in Saxavord, presumably to help them provide a viable alternative to Sutherland, who already have planning permission for 12 launches per year from a single launchpad, but do not yet have the necessary operating licenses from the Civil Aviation Authority, something that Saxavord already have in place. Anders intends to rewild large parts of his estates in the Sutherland area and fought the planning on the basis of its potential impact on protected areas.
Sutherland is only one of several potential launch sites in Scotland, which benefits from it’s northerly aspect and large areas of land mostly free of human habitation.
Both the UK Space Agency and HIE have provided millions of pounds in support of the Sutherland project so will be hoping this development pause is not indicative of wider issues with the potential viability of Scottish launch sites.
I remain optimistic, investors in space related companies are well aware of the long term nature of these projects, and it’s natural for some sites to be further ahead in their preparations than others. Scotland already produces more small satellites than any other European country, with AA Clyde Space, Alba Orbital, Spire already building cubesats and nanosats and Mangata Networks planning a manufacturing facility to build 5G capable satellites for connectivity.