The European Union is witnessing a new space race. While in the 1960s and 1970s it was framed within bloc dynamics and Cold War competition, today's contest is defined by the growing presence of the private sector.
Space is no longer the exclusive domain of states or international agencies. It has become a shared domain, where a small circle of leading companies, backed by significant financial resources, can build satellites, launch independently and pursue fully commercial activities in orbit.
While this trend reflects the democratization of space, it also highlights a congested orbital environment. Combined with intense competition and the militarization of space, this is increasing pressure on the orbital domain. The figures are telling: there are around 11,000 satellites in orbit today and by 2035 that figure could exceed 50,000.
This creates challenges for orbital security, with direct implications for security on Earth. Protecting space-based infrastructure is essential to ensure the delivery of fundamental services on the ground, such as satellite navigation, support for agritech and natural disaster mitigation.
It is precisely this need that the EU Space Act seeks to address: ensuring greater security and clear rules for a sector that must not become a "lawless territory," but instead be governed by a set of basic rules of engagement.
This article is part of the The Parliament's special policy report "Unlocking investment for EU competitiveness."
A European priority at last
However, the rules contained in the Space Act must not become overly burdensome for industry. Europe cannot allow itself to regulate in isolation while others do not. For this reason, the legislation should be guided by two additional principles.
First, the Space Act must function as an enabling legislative framework. Under the proposed European Competitiveness Fund in the next long-term budget, €131 billion is allocated to security, defense and space, reflecting their new status as top European priorities.
For years, Europe has underinvested in these fields. Today, the global landscape requires a rethink of this approach and decisive action to safeguard strategic assets.
Linked programs such as Horizon Europe support the space sector, particularly by strengthening research and innovation. However, this is not enough: the full potential of the European industry must be unlocked. Overly rigid rules are not the answer.
What is needed instead is a space ecosystem able to express its potential, conduct research, and innovate and strengthen European strategic autonomy, including in launchers and space-based defense capabilities.
The Space Act must deliver on these objectives and create the conditions for companies of all sizes to grow within a booming space economy.
Major contractors such as Leonardo, Thales and Airbus have recently signed a memorandum of understanding to create a "space industrial champion" aimed at boosting innovative investment in satellite capabilities of around €10 billion.
However, this also applies to a network of small and medium-sized enterprises that increasingly drive innovation rather than merely serve as components of the supply chain. A relevant example is Isar Aerospace, a German startup producing rockets to launch European satellites.
Second, in the context of growing orbital congestion, the Space Act must support the development of shared international standards on space traffic management, debris mitigation, collision avoidance and data sharing. Establishing rules at European level only for European operators, or those active in Europe, is not sufficient.
On the one hand, this would place the EU at a competitive disadvantage globally. Moreover, it would fail to address orbital congestion.
For this reason, the Space Act should serve as the first step in a broader international process aimed, in the medium to long term, at establishing a basic shared global framework to ensure a safe and sustainable space environment.
It is time to create the equivalent for space of the Conference of the Parties for the environment — and the EU must take the lead.
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