Polish firm signs biggest ever contract with European Space Agency to launch satellite constellation

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Poland’s Creotech Instruments has signed a €52 million (223 million zloty) contract with the European Space Agency (ESA) to build and launch a constellation of Earth observation satellites.

“This is the biggest contract in history signed between the ESA and a Polish entity,” said finance minister Andrzej Domański at yesterday’s signing ceremony, which was held during the ESA Security Conference in Warsaw.

“For Polish companies, this is an opportunity to gain knowledge and experience that will strengthen their position in the space sector on the international market,” added the development and technology ministry.

Creotech, which is the largest Polish space firm listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange, says that the constellation will contain at least three satellites – one radar, one high-resolution optical and one lower-resolution optical – along with associated ground infrastructure for control and data processing.

The project will provide data to support “effective crisis management, the safety of residents and infrastructure, and protection of the natural environment” in Poland, says the development ministry, which initially commissioned the project before selecting the ESA to implement and manage the tender.

Out of the €52 million for the project – which is titled Country Awareness Mission in Land Analysis (CAMILA) – €25.6 million will go to Creotech itself with the rest spent on work executed by subcontractors, including other Polish companies like CloudFerro, Eycore, GMV Innovating Solutions, KP Labs and Scanway.

Creotech says that several hundred people across Poland will be involved in the project, and that “the knowledge and experience gained will directly contribute to increasing the competitiveness of the Polish space sector and its share in European markets”.

“A key aspect of the undertaking is to strengthen national security and build Poland’s independence, including in the area of space technology,” added the company, quoted by the Polish Press Agency (PAP).

“This undertaking will not only strengthen Poland’s role in European space activities, but will also ensure the full integration of Polish companies into key European supply chains for small satellite systems.”

According to the company, “a significant part” of the system has already been tested in practice in space during a trial EagleEye mission conducted in 2024 by Creotech. It was then that the largest and most technologically advanced Polish satellite to date successfully reached orbit.

Deputy development minister Michał Baranowski said that the project marks “a strategic step towards increasing Poland’s autonomy, strengthening our resilience and building capabilities in advanced Earth observation – for civil, economic and security needs”.

Later this year, Poland is set to launch its first mission to the International Space Station (ISS), headed by Polish astronaut Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski, who will become the second Pole in history to travel to space and the first to stay aboard the ISS.

Notes from Poland is run by a small editorial team and published by an independent, non-profit foundation that is funded through donations from our readers. We cannot do what we do without your support.

Main image credit: Creotech Instruments 

Agata Pyka

Agata Pyka is an assistant editor at Notes from Poland. She is a journalist and a political communication student at the University of Amsterdam. She specialises in Polish and European politics as well as investigative journalism and has previously written for Euractiv and The European Correspondent.