Libra Group has launched the world’s first space leasing company dedicated to the full spectrum of space assets. Space Leasing International (SLI), building on Libra Group’s 20 years of aviation leasing, will own and lease assets critical to the space economy.
"SLI is helping to democratise the space economy by investing in building and maintaining a portfolio of space assets that will spark paradigm-shifting technologies and help to test and create market access at scale,” says George Logothetis, the executive chairman of Libra Group.
SLI’s first investment includes the construction of a ground station in the geospatially critical Alaskan Arctic - vital for polar orbits that monitor climate change - for lease to satellite data communications provider RBC Signals. SLI has also committed to acquire or build an additional 20 ground stations around the world in the next three years, which will be leased to RBC Signals as part of an ongoing business partnership.
Soon, SLI’s portfolio of space assets will expand to large and small assets essential to the space economy, including satellites, spaceports, and other space infrastructure.
Today’s commercial space industry is rapidly growing, says The Space Foundation. The space economy is projected to exceed $1 trillion by 2040, with the space sector’s development having a positive ripple effect on other global industries like transport and agriculture. It will also help to monitor crops, erosion, and the mitigation of climate change. However, creating and maintaining space assets is expensive, and limited supply and access to space infrastructure can restrict the growth of the sector.
SLI has applied Libra Group’s aviation leasing model, which it says can act as a catalyst for the space industry, by bridging the gap between manufacturers and operators of space assets. SLI aims to support innovation and asset creation by acting as an owner/lessor in the value chain, while providing non-dilutive capital.
“SLI is... providing a critical, otherwise missing link between the manufacturer and operator,” says Alejandro Kerschen, chief executive of SLI. “This helps grow production capacity, strengthens the product to the market value chain, and ultimately spurs critical innovation and development of space assets.”
SLI has 45 years of leasing experience across multiple industries, including aviation and maritime. It expands Libra Group’s aerospace holdings into space, and joins the Group’s aerospace subsidiary, LCI. Logothetis calls the formation of SLI as the “next exciting step for our Group, which is committed to advancing innovation, sustainability, and social impact while advancing the future in global sectors, including aerospace, maritime, and beyond”.