Singapore to set up national space agency on April 1 to develop and run space capabilities

SINGAPORE – A national space agency will be formed on April 1 to enable Singapore to seize opportunities in the expanding space economy and develop its space capabilities, said Minister-in-charge of Energy and Science & Technology Tan See Leng.

The National Space Agency of Singapore (NSAS) will have a multi-agency operations centre that will support government agencies with satellite tasking, or requesting satellite imagery of a specific location, and geospatial data analytics, he said at the opening of the inaugural Space Summit on Feb 2.

These could be applied to areas such as port operations, urban planning, environmental monitoring and food security, said Dr Tan, who is also Manpower Minister.

The Space Summit on Feb 2 and 3 at the Sands Expo and Convention Centre is being held in conjunction with the Singapore Airshow running from Feb 3 to 8.

Singapore will also look into further developing its constellation of satellites to meet national needs and specific situations in which they could be used across the equatorial region, Dr Tan said. “Our geographical location positions us to do more in this region.”

At present, the Government co-owns three earth observation satellites with home-grown technology, defence and engineering group ST Engineering.

“We will also progressively build up and operate space situational awareness capabilities, to ensure the safety of our space assets in the increasingly congested space domain,” Dr Tan added.

NSAS will develop national legislation and regulations for the space sector. It aims to be pro-innovation and pro-business, while meeting high standards for space safety and sustainability, Dr Tan said.

He said the new agency will expand on the existing functions of the Economic Development Board’s Office for Space Technology & Industry (OSTIn), to build “world-class space R&D capabilities, develop a thriving space industry and advance international partnerships”.

Set up as a department under the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI), the agency will engage the space sector on plans for legislation and build on OSTIn’s Guidelines for Singapore-Related Space Activities established in 2024.

In response to The Straits Times, an MTI spokesperson said OSTIn will be folded into the new agency, taking over 30 staff. The headcount will increase over the next five years, given the agency’s expanded mandate.

Helming the agency as chief executive will be veteran public servant Ngiam Le Na, the deputy chief executive of DSO National Laboratories, Singapore’s largest defence research and development (R&D) organisation.

With 25 years of experience in public service, she has held various senior appointments, including deputy chief executive of the Defence Science and Technology Agency.

Ms Ngiam oversaw the acquisition and development of earth observation satellites to serve national needs in areas such as environmental monitoring, maritime security and disaster relief, said MTI on Feb 2.

Since 2022, the Government has set aside more than $200 million for space R&D projects, supporting research institutes and companies in developing and testing their space technologies.

Under NSAS, R&D investments will be made in areas that include artificial intelligence, robotics and any technologies that contribute to the development of space and space-enabled capabilities.

R&D will also be funded in emerging areas like climate and sustainability technologies, space situational awareness and microgravity research in space in human health sciences.

The Government will also expand its network of international partnerships and help space technology companies in Singapore capture regional growth opportunities.

Help will be given to companies to validate space technologies. MTI said the intention is to attract space companies to establish bases in Singapore and scale up across Asia and beyond.

Currently, 70 space companies and 2,000 professionals operate in the sector here, engaging in a range of activities from designing and making space parts to providing satellite-based services.

Singapore began its foray into space technology more than 50 years ago.

It established its first ground station in 1971, and launched its first communications satellite in 1998 and its first locally built satellite in 2011.

The Government, industry and academia have launched more than 30 satellites over the past 20 years.

MTI said NSAS will helm Singapore’s efforts to fully tap the value and opportunities of the growing global space economy, which is projected to reach US$1.8 trillion (S$2.3 trillion) by 2035.

ST Engineering’s space pursuits

ST Engineering, which is one of the key participants at the Space Summit, announced plans to launch four new satellites between 2027 and 2030.

These satellites will provide high-resolution imaging for the equatorial region, to help with environmental and disaster response planning.

By the second half of 2026, the home-grown company will launch Nebula, Singapore’s first test satellite for inter-satellite laser communications.

The system will be used to test gigabit-per-second data transfers between satellites, an essential capability for developing ultra-fast space networks to support global broadband coverage, earth observation and secure exchange of data.