ESA finalizing 22 billion euro ministerial package
Posted: Sat, Oct 25, 2025, 11:23 AM ET (1523 GMT)
ESA is putting the finishing touches on a package of programs it will present to member states for funding at next month’s ministerial conference. At a briefing Thursday, ESA Director General Josef Aschbacher said that there are still a few loose ends to resolve on the package, valued at about 22 billion euros ($25.6 billion) over three years. ESA has removed one mission, an Earth science spacecraft called TRUTHS, because of what Aschbacher called “affordability reasons”; the British government reportedly withdrew its support for the mission recently. ESA is also dealing with funding uncertainty externally, with NASA yet to get a budget for fiscal year 2026, and internally, given upheavals in the French government. Aschbacher also said at the briefing that ESA will examine the impacts of the planned joint venture of the space businesses of Airbus, Leonardo and Thales, but was not worried about a potential loss of competition if the joint venture is approved.
ESA is putting the finishing touches on a package of programs it will present to member states for funding at next month’s ministerial conference. At a briefing Thursday, ESA Director General Josef Aschbacher said that there are still a few loose ends to resolve on the package, valued at about 22 billion euros ($25.6 billion) over three years. ESA has removed one mission, an Earth science spacecraft called TRUTHS, because of what Aschbacher called “affordability reasons”; the British government reportedly withdrew its support for the mission recently. ESA is also dealing with funding uncertainty externally, with NASA yet to get a budget for fiscal year 2026, and internally, given upheavals in the French government. Aschbacher also said at the briefing that ESA will examine the impacts of the planned joint venture of the space businesses of Airbus, Leonardo and Thales, but was not worried about a potential loss of competition if the joint venture is approved.
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