Australian Space Agency head visits Chennai to explore opportunities for collaboration in space industry ecosystem in T.N.
The Hindu
Enrico Palermo of Australian Space Agency meets Tamil Nadu stakeholders to explore collaboration in space industry growth.
Enrico Palermo, Head of Australian Space Agency (ASA) interacted with key stakeholders from the space ecosystem in Tamil Nadu, including representatives from the State government, academia and industry on Saturday. He met Industries Minister T.R.B.Rajaa, key officials from Tamil Nadu Industrial Development Corporation Limited (TIDCO), members of the Aerospace Industry Development Association of the State and notable space start-ups from the region, including OribitAID, Spacetug, Space Zone India and Vellon Space. Interactions were also held with businesses invested in the space and aerospace sectors, including TCS and Data Patterns.
As part of this discussion, the ASA Head provided an overview about Australia’s space industry ecosystem, Australia’s value proposition as a space partner, investor and innovator and how Australia can support launches, space exploration, earth observation, satellite communication, and navigation.
“The reason why I am in Chennai is the wonderful space ecosystem existing here – the State is working on a space policy and also a launch facility in the South (referring to the Kulasekarapattinam Spaceport). So we wanted to meet and connect with people in the sector and understand about the opportunities for collaboration in the future,” Mr. Palermo said. “We had a round table with TIDCO. We also met 10 startups. It was an opportunity for us to understand where we can collaborate,” he added.
“Tamil Nadu has many world class space tech startups and with Chief Minister M.K. Stalin pushing for growth of a brand new space tech industrial ecosystem in Kulasekarapattinam, we have been reaching out to work with foreign partners like the ASA, which can add immense value through strategic partnerships and knowledge exchange,” Mr.Rajaa said.
The delegation also visited the Indian Institute of Technology - Madras (IIT-M) Discovery Campus at Thaiyur and met with Agnikul Cosmos and The ePlane Company. Agnikul Cosmos recently launched ‘Agnibaan – SorTeD’ the world’s first rocket powered by a fully 3D-printed engine.
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