ThrustMe, a French provider of advanced in-orbit propulsion solutions for the industrial space era, has successfully entered the North American market, securing partnerships with 10 prominent US and Canadian companies. Notable customers include Starfish, Astro Digital, Magellan Aerospace, Lumen Orbit, Oligo, Turion Space, and Terran Orbital. This achievement comes after only 18 months of industrial production, marking a significant milestone in the company’s international expansion.
French innovation succeeds in a competitive market
North America is known for its highly competitive space industry, where international companies often face difficulties establishing themselves. ThrustMe’s rapid growth in this market reflects the increasing demand for solutions that address the complexities of satellite propulsion with a focus on reliability, efficiency, and production scalability.
Proven success in space operations
Since beginning industrial production in mid-2023, ThrustMe has delivered over 150 propulsion systems, with 67 already operational in space, supporting a range of customer missions. The company has also secured orders for more than 350 of its innovative propulsion system (the NPT30) which is a complete and intelligent gridded ion thrusters solution fueled by iodine, signaling growing confidence in its technology.
ThrustMe’s ability to adapt to unique customer requirements has been key to its success. For Starfish, ThrustMe delivered propulsion systems ahead of schedule despite an ambitious timeline. For Magellan Aerospace, ThrustMe is providing iodine-fueled electric propulsion units for a Canadian government satellite mission, while Lumen Orbit is using ThrustMe’s technology for an ambitious Very Low Earth Orbit (VLEO) mission to validate space-based data centers in-orbit cloud computing technology.
Propulsion at the heart of the industrial space era
As space missions become more advanced and the smaller satellite capacities grow, the combination of established expertise and new-space innovation is propelling the industry into the Industrial Space Era. Over the next decade, around 30,000 satellites are expected to be launched. To sustainably unlock their full potential, these satellites will require increasingly sophisticated in-orbit maneuver capabilities. Achieving this goal depends on technologies that enable satellites to move and operate independently, with propulsion systems playing a critical role in enabling these automated and autonomous maneuvers.
ThrustMe is uniquely positioned to meet these new industrial requirements, as one of the very few companies capable of delivering reliable and scalable propulsion solutions at the pace demanded by the space industry’s rapid growth.