Shanghai Launch Venture: 5 Chinese State Firms Create Rocket Company

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A new company focused on offshore rocket launches has been established in Shanghai through a collaboration of five state-owned enterprises. The shareholders collectively cover the entire supply chain, including rocket manufacturing, satellite networking, offshore engineering, industrial parks, and capital operations.

The company, with a registered capital of 1.1 billion CNY (approximately $161.3 million), was officially formed on April 30, according to business registration data. Its areas of service include providing civil aerospace launch technology, conducting research and development, manufacturing rocket launch equipment, and developing rocket control systems.

Ownership is distributed among Guosheng Group, China Aerospace Science and Technology Commercial Launch Vehicle Group (CACL), Spacecom Satellite Technology, China Offshore Engineering & Technology, and Xinzhuang Industrial Zone Economic & Technological Development. Their respective stakes are 27.3%, 22.7%, 18.2%, 18.2%, and 13.6%.

CACL is linked to the state-owned aerospace giant, China Aerospace Science and Technology, which has capabilities for upstream rocket development. Spacecom Satellite manages SpaceSail, China’s version of Starlink, and has a significant need for large-scale, low-cost rocket launches.

China Offshore Engineering & Technology will supply engineering technology and equipment needed to build offshore launch platforms. Meanwhile, Xinzhuang Industrial Zone and Guosheng Group will provide land and financial backing.

Shanghai is actively pursuing the development of a national hub for the commercial aerospace sector, with targeted industry values exceeding 100 billion CNY (around $14.7 billion) by the end of next year. The city aims to produce 100 commercial rockets and 1,000 commercial satellites annually, according to a regional plan released last year.

In January, Shanghai announced plans to create a “Rocket City” within the Xinzhuang Industrial Park in Minhang District. The initiative aims to establish a comprehensive aerospace cluster covering research, manufacturing, launching, operations, and applications, with the goal of developing a full supply chain for reusable rockets by 2027.