In-space Trade & Investment Opportunities with Switzerland
Are you looking to lift-off your space-tech business in Europe? Centred around the city of Lausanne on the shores of Lake Geneva, there is a dynamic and innovative in-space Swiss ecosystem that wants to actively engage with you! Here is our round-up of In-space Trade & Investment Opportunities with Switzerland.
Turning R&D into Commercial Success
Take for instance Space Exchange Switzerland (SXS) and Grégoire Bourban, who heads up a programme funded by the Swiss Space Office and backed by five leading universities led by EPFL. ‘Our mission,’ says Grégoire, ‘is to provide advocacy to turn research and development into commercial success. In the last few years, Switzerland has become a powerful thought leader and exponent in the new space economy nurturing successful start-ups and has created an attractive base for UK foreign direct investment.’
Investment & Growth
There’s commercial advocacy too from APCO Technologies which is one of the major players in the European space ecosystem, providing highly complex on-ground and on-board satellite and launcher equipment for the European Space Agency and the CNES as well for the Large System Integrators like Airbus, Thales, OHB and Ariane Group. APCO Technologies Board Member, Didier Manzoni is keen to now engage with the UK ecosystem, ‘We are interested in expanding both our knowledge and involvement with innovative UK scale-ups. We see great potential to now invest and grow our business in the UK and would welcome conversations with interested entrepreneurs.’
New Free Trade Agreement
Add to this mix recent negotiations for an enhanced Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between the Swiss and UK governments that will remove the remaining market access barriers, improve regulatory cooperation, and enable UK firms to invest in Switzerland, now and in the future. The FTA only serves to enhance existing trade and investment opportunities such as the Swiss Government’s unique Offset Funding programme and the current Innovate UK Collaborative R&D scheme. In the latter case, UK-registered organisations, in collaboration with at least one Swiss-registered business can apply for a share of up to £2 million for research projects resulting in innovative solutions.
Knitting this together is the region’s economic development board, Innovaud, which is keen to engage and assist interested and ambitious UK space-tech platforms.
To find out how your smart in-space technologies can lift-off from the Vaud Region, contact us or check out our events programme for upcoming expansion workshops where you will have an opportunity to directly connect with a host of in-country experts.
