Pangea Aerospace Raises €23 Million in Series A Funding Round with Hyperion, CDTI Innvierte, and Primo Space

• It has led the investment in Hyperion Fund, Europe’s pioneering aerospace, cybersecurity and defence fund, which reached its €150 million target two months ago.

• The European Space Agency (ESA) has chosen Pangea to define the very high-power rocket engine for future European reusable launchers.

• The round closes at a critical moment for technological sovereignty and European strategic independence in the aerospace and defence sector, amid a significant increase in national and international budgets.

Barcelona, 18 March 2025 -­ Pangea Aerospace, a start-up based in Barcelona and Toulouse specialising in the development of propulsion systems for the aerospace sector, has secured €23 million in its Series A funding round led by Hyperion Fund, a specialist in aerospace, cybersecurity, AI, and defence technologies, and backed by its current investors, CDTI Innvierte and the Italian fund Primo Space. In addition, French investor and former Ariane Group CEO, André-Hubert Roussel, has also joined the round.

Pangea Aerospace, founded in 2018, specialises in the development of advanced propulsion technologies for the space industry. Its innovative propulsion systems enable more efficient, reusable rockets powered by sustainable fuels, helping to reduce the costs of launch vehicles, satellites, and orbital transfer platforms.

With this funding round, Pangea will accelerate its expansion across the European market, aiming to continue growing its private customer base while participating in programmes of the European Space Agency (ESA) and other space agencies. In addition to its contract to define the European high-thrust engine, Pangea Aerospace is collaborating with ESA and a consortium of companies to design, manufacture and validate technologies for the next generation of large European engines. The company is also involved in multiple projects focused on the development and integration of its ARCOS engine, as well as the reuse of upper stages using aerospike technology.

A Commitment to Technological Sovereignty and European Strategic Independence

The entry of Hyperion Fund will allow Pangea to strengthen its manufacturing, integration, and testing capabilities, accelerating the development of strategic technologies that ensure both national and European sovereignty at a key global juncture.

It is estimated that between four and five satellites are launched into space every day, with more than 10,000 satellites already in orbit. By 2025, between 2,500 and 3,000 additional satellites are expected to be launched, in line with the expansion plans of existing megaconstellations and new initiatives in telecommunications and Earth observation.

According to 2023 figures, 52% of these launches were carried out by US operators, of which 84.4% correspond to SpaceX. 30% of launches were carried out by China. For these reasons, European authorities are committed to developing their own capabilities in a sector that is critical for telecommunications, mobility, and defence, with the aim of achieving strategic independence as quickly as possible.

Innovation in Propulsion to Support the Growth of the Space Sector

Propulsion systems typically account for 30% of the total cost of developing a rocket, as was the case with SpaceX’s Falcon 1, which cost $40 million of the programme’s total $130 million budget. They also determine launcher performance and are responsible for approximately 50% of launch failures. These factors make propulsion a key system for the industry and its continued growth.

Pangea Aerospace is the only company in Europe focused solely on engines for the space sector, with products for both launchers and other space vehicles. It has implemented a business model similar to that of Rolls-Royce in the aeronautical industry, already validated by several private customers. Its competitive advantage lies in proprietary technologies that deliver more efficient and cost-effective propulsion systems, enabling customers to maximise the benefits of launches while reducing development time and costs. This is made possible by its expertise in areas such as advanced alloys and materials science, aerospike technology, additive manufacturing, cooling systems, reusability and sustainable fuels.

This expertise is key to the future of the industry and positions Spain as a global leader in space propulsion. Pangea is the first company in the world to successfully ignite an aerospike engine powered by environmentally friendly fuels such as methane and liquid oxygen, which is one of the most efficient technological solutions due to its scalability, sustainability and reusability.

With more than €8 million raised to date, Pangea has become a benchmark in the sector. The company currently manages eight active contracts in parallel, working with both private clients and public institutions. It expects to double its turnover by 2025, with a pipeline of identified opportunities approaching €120 million.

Major Expansion of Investment in Strategic Aerospace Technologies

Pangea’s founding partners are engineers with extensive experience in both aerospace and business, such as Adrià Argemí at Airbus, Nicola Palumbo at Northrop Grumman, and Federico Rossi at AVIO. With this investment, the company will be able to double its workforce and further strengthen its manufacturing, integration, and testing capabilities. To this end, Pangea will continue to invest and collaborate with the Generalitat de Catalunya (Catalan Regional Government) to enhance the engine testing centre at Lleida-Alguaire Airport.

With this operation, Hyperion Fund begins its investment phase after raising €150 million as Europe’s first fund specialising in aerospace, cybersecurity, AI and defence. After reviewing 220 companies, the fund is now in negotiations with several firms across different NATO countries that are leaders in technological sub-sectors such as artificial intelligence, robotics, geolocation, photonics, electromagnetics, and aeronautics.

Hyperion was launched by fund manager Singular Asset Management, with a founding team of partners bringing diverse international expertise: Pablo Casado in global affairs, Joaquín Ortiz and José Antonio Bartrina in industry, and Ricardo Gómez-Acebo, Daniel Lorrain, along with new associates Juan Muñoz and Marina Quintero, in finance. In addition, its advisory committee includes prominent defence experts such as former NATO Secretary General Anders Rasmussen, former US Under Secretary of State Paula Dobriansky, and former French Defence Minister Michele Aliot. It also brings together industry experts such as former Saab Aero CIO Rob Murray and former AWS Chief Cybersecurity Officer Ilan Leiferman.