Notice

Presentation: UK Space Agency Ground Station Innovation Webinar

Updated 23 May 2025

1. Slide 1

UK Space Agency Ground Station Webinar

ARTES Competitiveness & Growth

Thursday 15 May 2025

2. Slide 2:

Agenda

Timings, Topic, Presenter

1300 to 1305, Introduction, Josh King, UK Space Agency

1305 to 1320, UK Space Agency Application Process, Josh King, UK Space Agency

1320 to 1330, European Space Agency Application Process, Barnaby Osborne, European Space Agency

1330 to 1340, Questions and Answers, Josh King, UK Space Agency

3. Slide 3:

Overview

Title of the Call: Ground Station

Call Envelope: €10,000,000 (No upper or lower limit for individual projects)

Expressions of Interest Deadline: 12 noon British Standard Time, 29 May 2025

4. Slide 4:

Scope

Satellite gateway technology which may be delivered under any programme line in the European Space Agency Advanced Research in Telecommunications Systems Programme.

Possible technologies include both Radio Frequency and Optical Satellite Gateways as well as the development of components, systems, or services to support these technologies.

The call is not open to applications for the development of user terminal, platform, or payloads.

5. Slide 5:

Eligibility

Must utilise Telecommunications infrastructure.

Prime must be a UK-based entity (Research and Technology Organisations and Academia are not eligible to prime).

Details of non-UK partners and/or suppliers must be provided in Expression of Interest.

Different funding levels for Large Businesses and Small to Medium Enterprises.

UK will not fund licensing or regulatory compliance activities.

Large Businesses or non-SMEs, Up to 50%

Small to Medium Enterprises, Up to 75%

6. Slide 6:

Criteria

All applications are considered in competition with others received and are assessed against the following five assessment criteria:

Approach and Methodology

Financial Return

Innovation

Supply Chain

Wider Benefits

7. Slide 7:

Application Timeline

2 May 2025, 1200pm, Competition Opens

29 May 2025, 1200pm, Deadline for completing UK Space Agency Expression of Interest Form

Week commencing 2 June 2025, Notification of Expression of Interest Outcomes

30 June 2025, 2359 British Standard Time, Deadline for completing UK Space Agency Cover Sheet Form

Week commencing 28 July 2025, Notification of UK Space Agency Cover Sheet Outcomes

To Be Confirmed, Deadline for Outline Proposal

To Be Confirmed, Notification of Outline Proposal Outcomes

To Be Confirmed, Deadline for Full Proposal submission to UK Space Agency To Be Confirmed, UK Space Agency Review and Authorisation of Funding Letter

8. Slide 8

Expressions of Interest EOI

First stage in the application process

All applicants must complete the online EOI form

Summary of your project, what are you proposing?

Deadline for Call, Thursday 29 May 2025, 1200pm British Standard Time

9. Slide 9

Summary

€10,000,000 funding envelope (No upper or lower limits for individual projects)

Deadline for Expressions of Interest, 29 May 2025, 1200pm British Standard Time

Prime must be a UK entity – Research and Technology Organisations and Academia are not eligible to prime activities.

Different funding levels for Large Businesses (up to 50%) and Small and Medium Enterprises (up to 75%).

10. Slide 10

Overview of the ESA ARTES Process

11. Slide 11

ARTES Competitiveness and Growth – ARTES C&G

Competitiveness and Growth

12. Slide 12

ARTES C&G Outline and Full Proposals

Outline Proposal (OP)

Overview company, planning, cost, deliverables

Product definition, development and verification

Business plan

Outline proposal allows ESA to assess eligibility, feasibility, and validity of the activity ESA assesses OP and potentially invites industry to submit FP

Full proposal (FP)

Modular structure

1 cover letter

2 business plan

3 technical

4 management

5 implementation

6 financial

7 contractual

5 and 6 dedicated proposal element required for subsequent phases

13. Slide 13

ARTES C&G standard process

ESA Outline Proposal (OP), Industry

Under 2 weeks

OP feedback

Gate x-1, announcement of FP submission

Around 4 Weeks

Gate X, full proposal (FP) submission

Under 5 weeks

Evaluation and feedback

Clarification and negotiation

Contract

National delegation, industry consults delegation, authorisation of funding

14. Slide 14

ARTES Standard and ARTES AGILE+

Activities with ESA price up to €500K, Agile+

Activities with ESA price higher than €500K, ARTES standard

Standard ARTES 4.0 Call for Proposals

Duration, As proposed

CCN, Possible

AC/IPC, Applicable

Max ESA price, Not limited

Prior work/IKC, Allowed under defined conditions

Expenditure outside MS, Above €100K (AC) and €200K (IPC) approval

Outline proposal, standard template on CSC website

Full proposal, Standard FP templates on ESA Star and CSC website

Template content, Detailed

Contract and negotiation, draft contract proposed by ESA and negotiated

Milestone payments, depending on proposal and complexity (to be negotiated) Payments per milestone, to be negotiated

ARTES AGILE+

Duration, Typically under or about 12 months

CCN, Possible

AC/IPC, Not Applicable

Max ESA price, 500K

Prior work/IKC, Allowed under defined conditions

Expenditure outside MS, Above €100K not allowed

Outline proposal, Dedicated template on CSC website

Full proposal, Dedicated AGILE+ FP template on ESA STAR and CSC website

Template content, Simplified

Contract and negotiation, ESA contract accepted at FP submission (not negotiable)

Milestone payments, Fixed (MTR, FR)

Payments per milestone, 60% MTR, 40% FR

15. Slide 15

Questions and answers

Telecoms@ukspaceagency.gov.uk