. | . |
US Govt orders Polyakov to sell entire Firefly Aerospace stake by Tim Korso Moscow (Sputnik) Jan 01, 2022
The businessman revitalised the space company using his own funds back in 2017, when it was on the brink of bankruptcy. Since then, the firm secured its first contracts with the US government and held a partially successful first launch of a satellite. The US government demanded Ukrainian software mogul Max Polyakov to sell his entire stake in the space company Firefly Aerospace, which manufactures lunar landers and is working on a satellite delivery rocket of its own, under the pretext of national security concerns, Bloomberg has reported citing the businessman's spokespeople. The government also ordered Firefly to halt preparations for its second test launch of their rocket from Vandenberg until the businessman rescinds his ownership, the media outlet reported citing two anonymous sources. Polyakov owns around 50% stake in the company, which he rescued after bankruptcy in 2017 using $200 million from his fortune. He already faced concerns from the US government in terms of his ownership of the company - American laws strictly regulate the handling of rocket technologies, namely prohibiting non-US citizens to work with them. This created many hurdles for Firefly when it was fighting for government contracts, leading to Polyakov's decision to step down from the company's board to alleviate Washington's concerns. However, in November, the US Committee on Foreign Investment sent a letter to the businessmen in which it cited national security worries and demanded that Polyakov sell his stake in Firefly, Bloomberg said. The Ukrainian businessman's spokespeople confirmed to the media outlet that he agreed to fulfil the demand, while stressing that his ownership of the company never posed any national security threats to the US. "Noosphere Ventures says it intends to retain an investment banking firm to assist in the sale of Noosphere Ventures' ownership interest in Firefly Aerospace", Polyakov's spokespeople said in a statement. Polyakov originally bought Firefly, an unsuccessful space startup founded in 2014, with the intent of building a private space company, which would develop its own rocket using combined experience in this field of both American and Ukrainian specialists. The company founded a research centre in a Ukrainian city. The businessman envisaged that once it's up and running, Firefly would boost both the US and Ukraine's space capabilities. The space startup even acquired a technology sharing agreement between Ukraine and the US, as well as secured several contracts with NASA, DARPA and the US Air Force. In September 2021, it conducted the first launch of its rocket. While it did not reach the designated orbit, the test run was viewed as a success. Firefly was actively preparing for the second launch when the letter from the US Committee on Foreign Investment arrived. Source: RIA Novosti
NASA, private space industry may reach new heights in 2022 Orlando FL (UPI) Dec 27, 2021 Space exploration may shatter records in 2022 with the launch of the most powerful rocket ever in a flight beyond the moon, a space telescope that will peer into the dawn of the universe and groundbreaking science on Mars. The New Year also may see SpaceX's deep space Starship rocket fly above the atmosphere, expansion of space tourism and new rocket launches from companies such as United Launch Alliance and Firefly Aerospace. Meanwhile, Elon Musk's SpaceX plans to dominate the global launch ... read more
|
|
The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us. |