ESA Proposes €1 Billion Budget to Strengthen Europe’s Space Capabilities
European Space Agency (ESA) Director General Josef Aschbacher announced the launch of the European Resilience from Space program on Tuesday, October 28th, in Brussels. This initiative is designed to consolidate national space resources and build new capabilities in intelligence, surveillance, secure communications, and navigation, thereby enhancing Europe’s resilience and autonomy against evolving security challenges. The program has an anticipated budget of €1 billion.
“In this period of rapid transformation, there is a pressing requirement to coordinate European efforts by integrating space and defense expertise, preventing redundancy, and pooling assets for greater impact,” Aschbacher stated. “Europe remains too fragmented to ensure robust, comprehensive, and autonomous space resilience. Now is the moment to address this, and we must seize the opportunity.”
Aschbacher outlined that the European Resilience from Space (ERS) program will serve as a foundation for a future European initiative intended for funding under the next EU Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF), which is currently being prepared by the European Commission. With the budget approval process set for completion in 2028, ESA’s early involvement is critical to facilitate swift deployment once funding becomes available. Ultimately, the advanced capabilities developed within the ESA framework are to be transferred to a future “operational entity,” the specifics of which have yet to be defined.
The initial focus of the ERS program will be the development of an Earth observation capability (ERS-EO), which will directly support the European Commission’s forthcoming Earth Observation Government Services (EOGS) initiative. EOGS is planned to commence in 2028 following the adoption of the next MFF. The ERS-EO portion represents the majority of the program’s funding, with €750 million allocated.
Under the ERS-EO element, ESA intends to deliver a persistent, all-weather, real-time observational system with high revisit frequency, targeting intervals of less than 30 minutes. This objective will be achieved through collaboration with national satellite constellations, such as the Portuguese - Spanish Atlantic Constellation and Poland’s CAMILA constellation. Participating countries will retain oversight of their respective assets but may offer additional capacity on an in-kind basis. The shared data capability will be enhanced by information from the EU’s existing Copernicus constellation and new satellites commissioned under the program, with the first launches potentially occurring as soon as 2028.
A secondary component of the ERS program, Navigation (ERS-Nav), will be allocated €250 million. The Communications segment (ERS-Com) will include supplementary developments for the IRIS2 program, the EU’s secure low Earth orbit satellite communications network, positioned to provide member states with a sovereign European solution distinct from Starlink.
Although the overall structure of the ERS program has been determined, Aschbacher confirmed in a subsequent press conference that detailed specifications remain under development. The European Commission will deliver preliminary requirements by November, coinciding with ESA’s Ministerial Council meeting in Bremen; more refined criteria are anticipated in the first quarter of next year.