How the EU space programme could deliver bigger economic impact

© SCIENCE BUSINESS | Florin Zubașcu

A report commissioned by the ITRE committee says small companies should tap EU funds to develop new products and services, strengthening Europe’s space industry and reinforcing its global competitiveness.

The EU should do more to help member states and small companies take up space data and technology, so that Europe’s public investment in space projects can return economic value, a new report commissioned by the European Parliament’s research and industry committee (ITRE) has concluded.

The Commission has made a move in this direction with the launch of a knowledge centre on earth observation, which is intended to make better use of the geo-referenced satellite data generated by the Copernicus system. However, experts say the Commission needs to make more effort to encourage the public and private sectors to use space data and technologies.

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