Agnikul Cosmos Raises Rs 200 Crore, Readying for Suborbital Rocket Launch
Space tech startup Agnikuk Cosmos has raised nearly Rs 200 crore from its Series B funding Round. The Chennai-based company plans to conduct a suborbitalrocket launch from its private pad in the next two months, marking India’s second
private launch after Skyroot’s Vikram-S. Here are some more details about the space tech venture.
Founding Year: 2017
Location: Chennai
Business: It operates India’s first private launchpad and mission control center. The hot testing of a rocket engine developed by Agnikul Cosmos was conducted by the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC) at its Vertical Test Facility, Thumba Equatorial Rocket Launching Station, Thiruvananthapuram.
Founders: Moin SPM, Srinath Ravichandran, and Satyanarayanan Chakravarthy
Total Funds Raised: $40 million which includes $26 million raised in the Series B round plus a $11 million Series A round in March 2021.
Valuation: Around $180 million
Financials: No Revenue with Rs 9 crore loss in FY22
Competitors: Skyroot, Pixxel, Bellatrix, GlaxEye, Dhruva, Vesta Space, Digantara, and InspeCity
Plans: The firm intends to establish a launch platform with pricing independent of payload mass. Agnikul has initiated the integration of its Agnibaan, a two-stage customisable launch vehicle capable of carrying up to 300 kg to orbits
approximately 700 km away. Agnikul plans to commercialize its operations besides investing in facilities like mobile launchpads and other test rigs.
“…Our focus is shifting from singular rocket launches to a strategic approach aimed at scaling. We’re considering how toscale not just for one or a few rocket launches, but for the next 25 or even 50 launches,” said Srinath Ravichandran, cofounder and CEO of Agnikul.
