Saudis to fund Virgin space mission

The space arm of Richard Branson's Virgin Group is set to get a cash injection from Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund.

Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund is planing to invest about $US1 billion ($A1.3 billion) in Virgin Galactic, The Spaceship Company and Virgin Orbit.

The non-binding memorandum of understanding includes an option for $US480 million of future additional investment in space services, the statement carried by the official Saudi Press Agency said on Thursday.

"This investment will enable us to develop the next generation of satellite launches and accelerate our programme for point to point supersonic space travel," Virgin Group founder Richard Branson said.

Earlier Branson said he has accepted a board position on large development projects in Saudi Arabia.

"I will invest. I've been asked to be ... on the board of one or two of your city projects - your Red Sea Project - and am delighted to accept," he told an investment conference in the capital Riyadh on Thursday.

Saudi Arabia announced on Tuesday a $US500 billion cross-border city development project on the Red Sea. The kingdom also plans tourism developments on a number of Red Seea islands.


Share

1 min read

Published

Source: AAP



Share this with family and friends


Get SBS News daily and direct to your Inbox

Sign up now for the latest news from Australia and around the world direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Download our apps
SBS News
SBS Audio
SBS On Demand

Listen to our podcasts
An overview of the day's top stories from SBS News
Interviews and feature reports from SBS News
Your daily ten minute finance and business news wrap with SBS Finance Editor Ricardo Gonçalves.
A daily five minute news wrap for English learners and people with disability
Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS
SBS World News

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service
Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world
Saudis to fund Virgin space mission | SBS News