India's Skyroot Aerospace has became the first space-sector company in the country to hit a $1 billion dollar valuation after securing $60 million in fresh funding from Singapore's sovereign wealth fund GIC and Silicon Valley-based Sherpalo Ventures.
Investment management company BlackRock (BLK.N) also took part in the funding round, taking Skyroot's total capital raised to $160 million, the company said in a statement on Thursday.
The company launched India's first privately developed rocket in 2022 and said it is now valued at $1.1 billion.
The valuation and financial backers involved send a "strong signal to global investors" about the credibility of India's space sector, said retired Lieutenant General AK Bhatt, the director general of the Indian Space Association, an industry lobby group.
Skyroot is preparing the maiden launch of Vikram-1, the country's first privately developed orbital rocket, after the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), the country's national space agency, suffered consecutive orbital launch failures.
Founded in 2018, Hyderabad-based Skyroot was the first space startup to sign an agreement to use ISRO launch-and-test facilities when the government opened the door to private companies in 2020.
CEO and co-founder of Skyroot Aerospace, Pawan Kumar Chandana, said the ability to launch rockets is critical given few countries or private companies have such capabilities.
"This will promote more and more investments in India," he said.
Sherpalo Ventures founder Ram Shriram, known for his early backing of Google, will join the Skyroot's board, the company also said.
Skyroot said the funding will allow it to increase the frequency of Vikram-1 launches, expand its manufacturing capacity, and advance development of Vikram-2.
