India is set to transfer management of its under-construction Small Satellite Launch Complex at Kulasekarapattinam to private companies, marking a significant shift towards commercial space activities and promising up to 25 launches annually from 2026.
India is preparing to hand over the operation and management of its under-construction Small-Satellite Launch Complex at Kulasekarapattinam in Tamil Nadu to a private player, in a move that would deepen the country’s shift towards commercial space activity. The Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre, working through the Indian Space Research Organisation, has invited expressions of interest from eligible Indian firms for the site in Thoothukudi district, which is being built as a dedicated launch centre for small rockets.
The complex is designed around the Small Satellite Launch Vehicle, or SSLV, and is also expected to support private launchers such as Skyroot Aerospace’s Vikram-1 and Agnikul Cosmos’ Agnibaan. ISRO says the facility will include upper-stage assembly buildings and a launch service building, while the launch pad and supporting infrastructure are being developed to handle polar missions. The space agency began construction in March 2025 and has said the project is expected to be finished by December 2026, with the potential for up to 25 launches a year.
At an estimated cost of Rs 950 crore, the spaceport is strategically important because it offers a more direct southward launch path than Sriharikota, where rockets often need fuel-intensive manoeuvres to avoid Sri Lanka. That should improve payload capacity and lower launch costs, making the site especially attractive for the emerging small-satellite market. The handover plan also reflects the government’s wider effort, set out in the Indian Space Policy 2023, to bring private capital and expertise more directly into India’s space sector.
Under the proposed arrangement, ISRO would transfer the facilities already created at the site to the selected operator, which would then run the complex and provide commercial launch services. The agency would continue to support the chosen firm with technical guidance, training and operational help until it had completed three launches or one year had passed, whichever came first. But the eligibility bar is high: applicants must be Indian-owned and controlled non-government entities with at least seven years of operations, large-project experience, an average annual turnover of more than Rs 2,000 crore over three of the past five years and a net worth of at least Rs 1,000 crore. Interested companies must register through the Bharatkosh portal to access the documents, with the pre-EOI schedule including a deadline of August 24, a site visit on September 10 and a meeting in Ahmedabad on September 15.
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