Spanish startup PLD Space bets €35M on its own launchpad in French Guiana
Europe's small-satellite launch market just got a concrete milestone: Spanish rocket company PLD Space has confirmed a €35 million investment in its own launch complex at the Guiana Space Centre (CSG) in Kourou, French Guiana. Civil construction work is on track to finish by summer 2026, after which crews will install the rocket-specific ground support equipment. It's the first time a fully private operator has put this level of capital into modernizing the historic ELM-Diamant zone at CSG.
The rocket
PLD Space's vehicle is the Miura 5, a two-stage small-lift rocket designed to carry payloads into low Earth orbit. Its standout feature is partial reusability: the first stage descends under parachutes into the ocean after separation, where it is recovered, refurbished, and relaunched. The company says this recovery loop will meaningfully cut the cost per kilogram to orbit over time — a pitch aimed squarely at the growing market of small constellation operators who currently depend on SpaceX Falcon 9 rideshare slots.
The first test flight is targeted for late 2026. Commercial operations are scheduled to begin in 2027. The European Investment Bank backed the program with a €30M venture loan in April 2026 — its first direct investment in a small-launcher company — framing the deal as a strategic autonomy play for the EU.
? We have increased our investment in the MIURA 5 Launch Complex at the Guiana Space Centre (CSG) to €35M.
— PLD Space (@PLD_Space) June 1, 2026
This milestone makes PLD Space the first private operator to invest at this scale at the ELM-Diamant site, contributing to the evolution of Europe's historic spaceport.… pic.twitter.com/Z1uPFMFwm8
The first customer
PLD Space already has a paying customer lined up. Spanish satellite company Sateliot signed a contract in February 2026 to launch two of its Trito 5G satellites aboard Miura 5 in 2027. Each satellite weighs around 160 kg. The deal is notable because both the launcher and the satellite operator are Spanish — a rare end-to-end private space mission contained within a single country's industrial ecosystem.
Two launchpads, not one
Kourou is not PLD Space's only planned launch site. The company has also signed an agreement with Oman's Etlaq Spaceport, targeting first flights from the Middle East as early as 2027. The dual-site strategy gives customers flexibility on launch azimuth and logistics, and reduces dependence on a single geographic facility. As TechFundingNews notes, PLD Space is competing directly against German startups Isar Aerospace and Rocket Factory Augsburg for the same pool of European small-satellite customers — a race where infrastructure readiness is now a key differentiator.
With over €350 million raised in total — including a €180M Series C in March 2026 — PLD Space has the funding runway to reach its first orbital attempt. Whether the Miura 5 delivers on its late-2026 test target will be the real test of that ambition.
