Dhruva Space

Dhruva Space Private Limited is an Indian private aerospace manufacturer headquartered in Hyderabad, Telangana. Founded in 2012 by Sanjay Srikanth Nekkanti, the company is engaged in the development of small satellites in the commercial, governmental and academic markets.[1] It provides full-stack space-engineering solutions across launch, space and ground segments – namely, the building, launching and operation of satellites.

Dhruva Space Private Limited
TypePrivate
IndustryAerospace
Founded2012 (2012)
FounderSanjay Srikanth Nekkanti
Headquarters
Hyderabad, Telangana
,
India
Key people
Sanjay Srikanth Nekkanti
(CEO)
Abhay Egoor
(CTO)
Krishna Teja Penamakuru
(COO)
Chaitanya Dora Surapureddy
(CFO)
Kranthi Chand
(Head - Strategy & Special Projects)
Products
Services
Number of employees
approximately 60
Websitewww.dhruvaspace.com

The founding team is composed of business and technology leaders who were formerly working with Exseed Space (now called Satellize), ams AG, Cisco and KPMG and all of whom are alumni of institutes such as BITS Pilani, SRM Institute of Science and Technology, EMLYON Business School, Luleå University of Technology and Arizona State University.

History

In 2014, Dhruva Space signed a deal with AMSAT India to develop HAMSAT-II.[2]

In December 2019, Dhruva Space raised ₹5 crore in funding led by Mumbai Angels Network.[3]

In September 2020, Dhruva Space became the first Indian private company to secure an order for end-to-end design and development of space-grade solar arrays for satellites.

In October 2021, Dhruva Space raised ₹22 crore in funding led by Indian Angel Network (IAN) Fund and Blue Ashva Capital.[4]

On 16 March 2022, Dhruva Space signed a commercial launch services agreement (LSA) with NewSpace India Limited for an in-orbit test of its Dhruva Space Orbit Deployers. These are likely to be used on board the PSLV and the SSLV.[5][6]

On 10 June 2022 at the inauguration of Indian National Space Promotion and Authorization Centre (IN-SPACe) in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, Dhruva Space signed an MoU with IN-SPACe for the enablement of space activities, namely the testing and launch of satellites and satellite components. The MoU also dives into two more aspects of this integral partnership: the testing of the startup's own satellite deployers on the PSLV C53 Mission in June 2022, and the launch of its own two CubeSats – Thybolt-1 and Thybolt-2 – as a part of the PSLV C54 mission in November 2022.[7]

On 24 June, Dhruva Space and Digantara Aerospace were announced as the first two private companies to receive authorisation from IN-SPACe for space activities.[8][9]

Capability and Infrastructure

Dhruva Space currently operates out of a 10,000 square-foot facility in the Begumpet area of Hyderabad. The workspace houses specialised facilities such as a Class 10,000 Cleanroom, a Helmholtz Cage, fully-equipped mechanical and electronic labs, and an operational ground station.

On 14 October 2023, Dhruva Space shared a first look at the company's upcoming 280,000 square-foot facility to be situated in the outskirts of Hyderabad that will design, engineer, assemble, integrate and test large-scale satellite infrastructure. Products and services include satellite platforms and subsystems, satellite orbital deployers, ground station equipment, and more.[10] The facility completion will be done in a multi-phase manner. The first phase – to be ready in 18 to 24 months – will be 150,000 square feet, which includes a 20,000 square foot Solar Array Assembly Line.[11]

Partnerships

On 20 November 2020, Dhruva Space entered into an MoU with Skyroot Aerospace, a private Indian launch vehicle provider.[12]

In May 2020, Dhruva Space entered into an MoU with Florida-based Sidus Space, to collaborate and catalyse the design, development, and commercialisation of new innovative space technologies and services.[13]

On 16 February 2023, Dhruva Space signed a Memorandum of Agreement with French strategic equipment supplier Comat, for a bilateral technology exchange for diversity in market access and Space solutions.[14]

On 16 March 2023, Dhruva Space announced a partnership with France-based satellite operator and global connectivity provider Kinéis. Both companies will collaborate to establish space and ground infrastructure to scale the diversity and impact of satellite-based solutions.[15]

Awards & Accolades

In October 2020, Dhruva Space was recognised with a National Startup Award by the Government of India for its efforts in Satellite and Space Technology.[16]

In March 2022, Dhruva Space was named 'Best Spacetech Startup' by Entrepreneur India magazine, BusinessEx.com and Gupshup for the Startup 2022 Awards.[17]

On March 17, 2022, Dhruva Space won the Qualcomm Design for India Challenge 2021 for their Bolt module, a switchable connectivity device that enables uninterrupted connection through cellular (5G) bands and satellite communication.[18] The win includes a ₹65 lakh prize as well as patent-filing incentives, accelerator services, Government interactions, participation at industry events, dedicated engineering support and access to the Qualcomm Innovation Lab. In October 2022, the company exhibited Bolt at the India Mobile Congress 2022 at Pragati Maidan, New Delhi, as part of Qualcomm India's 5G Startups Showcase.

In April 2022, Dhruva Space's founders were featured in Fortune India magazine's 40 Under 40 annual list.

On 11 October 2022, Dhruva Space was named ‘Best Startup - Silver’ for the Telangana State Industry Awards 2022. The Award will be accoladed to the startup on 7 March 2023 by Kalvakuntla Taraka Rama Rao, Minister for Municipal Administration & Urban Development, Industries & Commerce, and Information Technology, Government of Telangana.[19]

On 1 March 2023, Dhruva Space was awarded with an Innovation for India Award by the Marico Innovation Foundation.[20][21] The Innovation for India Awards was held at Jio World Centre, Mumbai, and the award was accoladed to Dhruva Space by Rajeev Bakshi, Non-Executive & Independent Director, Marico Limited.

On 27 March 2023, Dhruva Space was announced as one of the winners of the Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya Telecom Skill Excellence Awards, instituted by the Ministry of Communications, Government of India. The Awards Ceremony was held at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi, during the First International Quantum Conclave. The PDUT Award was felicitated to Dhruva Space by Ashwini Vaishnaw, IAS, Minister of Railways, Communications and Electronics & Information Technology, Government of India.

Missions
ISRO's PSLV-C53 launch on 30 June 2022, which carried Dhruva Space's 1U Satellite Orbital Deployer

On 30 June 2022, Dhruva Space's Satellite Orbital Deployer was successfully tested and space-qualified (known as DSOD-1U Mission) in Indian Space Research Organisation's PSLV C53 mission, hosted on POEM. The launch took place at 18:02 IST from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) at Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh.[22][23][24]

Recognition of the mission success came from dignitaries including Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi, Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal, Minister for Municipal Administration & Urban Development, Industries & Commerce, and IT Kalvakuntla Taraka Rama Rao.

On 26 November 2022, Dhruva Space launched two amateur radio communication CubeSats as part of ISRO's PSLV C54 mission. The launch of Dhruva Space's Thybolt Mission took place at 11:56am from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) at Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh.[25][26] As of 1 February 2023, Thybolt-1 and Thybolt-2 completed 1000 orbits in LEO.[27] The mission lifetime, according to the company, is approximately one year. At Broadband India Forum’s India SatCom 2022 in New Delhi, India, Dhruva Space was accoladed by IN-SPACe Chairman Dr. Pawan K Goenka to have 'the first private Indian satellites authorised by IN-SPACe, successfully deployed in orbit.'

The mission observed support from dignitaries including Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi, Minister for Road Transport & Highways Nitin Gadkari, Minister of Tourism, Culture and Development of North Eastern Region of India G Kishan Reddy, and Minister for Municipal Administration & Urban Development, Industries & Commerce, and IT Kalvakuntla Taraka Rama Rao.

On 22 April 2023, the company launched its 3U and 6U Satellite Orbital Deployers and its Dhruva Space Satellite Orbiter Link (DSOL) onboard ISRO’s PSLV C55, as part of POEM-2. Dhruva Space and IN-SPACe have both declared the missions successful.[28][29]

References
  1. "Dhruva Space". www.dhruvaspace.com.
  2. "HAMSAT II – Dhruva Space and AMSAT India". 3 December 2014.
  3. "Dhruva Space raised collective funding of INR 5 Crores from Mumbai Angels Network & other external Angel Investors". Mumbai Angels Network. 2 December 2019.
  4. "Dhruva Space secures Rs 22 crore funding from IAN, Blue Ashva Capital". Economic Times.
  5. "Dhruva Space signs commercial launch deal". The Hindu. 18 March 2022. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 6 April 2022.
  6. "Dhruva Space". www.dhruvaspace.com. Retrieved 6 April 2022.
  7. "Dhruva Space Private Limited signs MoU with IN-SPACe at IN-SPACe inauguration". Dhruva Space Private Limited. 10 June 2022.
  8. Kaur, Jaspreet (27 June 2022). "IN-SPACe Nods Startups Dhruva Space And Digantra To Launch Payloads". Inc42.
  9. "Two space start-ups authorised, marks beginning of private space sector launches in India". PTI, ET Telecom. 28 June 2022.
  10. Sur, Aihik (14 October 2023). "Dhruva Space to build 2.8 lakh sq ft satellite infra manufacturing facility in Hyderabad". MoneyControl.
  11. Kurmanath, K V (14 October 2023). "First phase of Dhruva Space's manufacturing facility will be ready in 18-24 months". The Hindu BusinessLine.
  12. Dhruva Space [@DhruvaSpace] (20 November 2020). "Broadening the value of our Space and Launch Services we entered into an MoU with @SkyrootA today, India's very own Private Launch Provider. #NewSpace #Satellite #Launch #NewSpaceIndia #skyroot #DhruvaSpace t.co/cT0aWdX25h" (Tweet). Retrieved 11 January 2021 – via Twitter.
  13. "Sidus Space Partners With Dhruva Space". Sidus Space. 26 May 2020.
  14. "Dhruva Space, French company Comat ink pact for space components". ET Satcom via ET Telecom; The Economic Times. 17 February 2023.
  15. "Space startup Dhruva Space inks pact with French firm Kinéis". Zee Business. 17 March 2023.
  16. "Dhruva Space awarded with 'National Startups Awards'". Deccan Herald. 9 October 2020.
  17. "Entrepreneur India Startup 2022 Award Winners". Entrepreneur India.
  18. John, Sujit (1 April 2022). "Dhruva space wins Qualcomm Design in India Challenge". Times Techies, Times of India.
  19. "Dhruva Space bags 'Best Startup - Silver' for Telangana State Industry Awards 2022". www.dhruvaspace.com. 11 October 2022.
  20. Mitter, Sohini (5 March 2023). "Spacetech start-up Dhruva, health-tech platform Dozee awarded by Marico Innovation Foundation". Business Today.
  21. "Marico Foundation awards 7 innovators". Hindustan Times. 3 March 2023.
  22. Sur, Aihik (1 July 2022). "Dhruva Space successfully tests its satellite deployer aboard ISRO's PSLV C53". MoneyControl.
  23. Kumar, Chethan (1 July 2022). "Dhruva Space satellite orbital deployer space-qualifies". Times of India.
  24. "Dhruva Space tests satellite orbital deployer onboard PSLV". PTI, The Economic Times. 1 July 2022.
  25. "Dhruva Space set to launch nanosatellites Thybolt-1 and Thybolt-2 onboard ISRO's PSLV C54 on November 26 2022". Dhruva Space. 21 November 2022.
  26. "PSLV-C54 all set to blast off on Nov 26". The New Indian Express. 21 November 2022.
  27. "'1000 orbits – and many more to go!'". Dhruva Space on Instagram. 1 February 2023.
  28. "Missions success! Dhruva Space successfully Space-qualifies 3U and 6U Satellite Orbital Deployers and Orbital Link onboard ISRO's PSLV-C55". Dhruva Space. 3 May 2023.
  29. "IN-SPACe Missions". IN-SPACe.
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