Singapore-based spacetech startup Aliena has secured fresh Series A1 funding to expand production, develop higher-powered satellite engines and establish a European presence by early 2027.

Singapore-based space propulsion startup Aliena has raised US$5.5 million in a Series A1 funding round, as it prepares to expand its satellite engine business in Europe and shorten delivery times for spacecraft manufacturers.

The round was led by investment firm In Group Holdings, with participation from existing investors Wavemaker Partners and workforce management company LotusOne.

The company plans to direct the funding towards research, development and production, while also preparing to open an office in the European Union by early 2027.

The expansion comes as satellite manufacturers face constraints in the availability of propulsion systems. For Aliena, the opportunity lies not just in producing more engines, but in making them available faster and adapting them to the requirements of different spacecraft.

From a university research connection to a satellite engine business

Founded in 2018 by Mark Lim and George-Cristian Potrivitu, Aliena develops electric propulsion technology that helps satellites maintain their position during extended missions in space.

The two founders met while pursuing their doctorates at the Space Propulsion Centre of Nanyang Technological University in Singapore.

Lim serves as CEO, while Potrivitu is the company’s chief technology officer.

Aliena specialises in Hall effect thrusters, which use electric propulsion to help spacecraft make adjustments during their missions. Its products include individual thrusters and complete propulsion systems.

The company also owns the intellectual property covering every subsystem within its engines, allowing it to design propulsion solutions for missions with specialised technical requirements.

Its longer-term ambition is to become a widely used supplier to satellite manufacturers and operators rather than depend on a narrow group of customers.

Why Europe matters to Aliena’s next phase

Europe has become an important market for the Singapore startup.

Although Aliena also operates across Asia, Europe accounts for its largest customer base. The company competes there with established propulsion businesses, including France-based ExoTrail.

The planned European office would bring Aliena closer to a market where demand for satellite propulsion technology is being shaped partly by concerns about supplier availability and dependence on foreign manufacturers.

According to Lim, international sanctions have restricted access to Russian-made thrusters, while propulsion equipment shortages have affected certain US defence programmes.

He also pointed to increasing interest among European companies in developing satellite networks without relying entirely on American suppliers.

These conditions present an opening for companies capable of offering alternative propulsion systems.

For Aliena, establishing a local presence could support its efforts to serve existing customers and secure new business. The company has not disclosed the specific European location for its proposed office.

A factory in Singapore is changing its delivery ambitions

One of the more important developments in Aliena’s operations took place in 2025, when it opened its own testing and production facility in Singapore.

Previously, environmental qualification tests required systems to be sent to external vendors. Bringing that work in-house has helped the startup reduce the time involved in preparing propulsion equipment for customers.

Aliena is now targeting a 12-month delivery timeline, compared with the industry range of 12 to 18 months cited by the company.

It believes that timeline could eventually fall to six months or less.

That ambition could become a significant part of its competitive positioning, particularly for satellite manufacturers working with tightly planned missions.

The Singapore facility currently has the capacity to produce up to 100 propulsion systems annually.

External partners manufacture certain subsystems, while Aliena’s engineering team handles assembly, integration and functional testing.

The company intends to increase production as orders grow. Where future assembly and integration operations are located will depend partly on customer requirements.

Building engines for satellites with different power needs

Aliena currently offers two classes of Hall effect thrusters, rated at 100 watts and 300 watts.

The smaller 100-watt systems are designed for satellites with more limited power availability, while the 300-watt class is suited to larger spacecraft.

The startup is also developing a third class of thruster approaching the kilowatt range.

Engine power is an important consideration in satellite design. A higher-powered propulsion system can deliver greater thrust, but it also places additional demands on a spacecraft’s electricity supply.

Potrivitu has explained that smaller satellites with limited solar panels and battery capacity may technically be able to operate more powerful engines, but only for short periods before requiring recharging.

That makes matching propulsion technology to the spacecraft’s available power essential.

Aliena’s range of products is intended to address these varying requirements rather than treat every satellite mission as technically identical.

According to Lim, relatively few manufacturers worldwide produce Hall thrusters in the 100-watt category. He also said a major competitor in that segment has shifted its attention towards larger propulsion systems.

The company sees an opportunity to continue serving customers requiring lower-power engines while developing products for more demanding missions.

South Korea emerges as a key Asian market

Alongside its European business, Aliena has established customer relationships in South Korea, which represents its largest market in Asia.

Among its customers is Kairo Space, a South Korean satellite manufacturer developing a mission for the Korea Aerospace Research Institute.

Aliena has also supplied South Korean customers with a customised propulsion system combining four of its main thrusters.

These projects reflect the company’s existing approach to spacecraft propulsion, where systems are often adapted for a particular mission rather than delivered as completely standardised products.

However, that approach is expected to evolve.

Moving from customised systems to ready-to-install products

Aliena wants to make its propulsion technology easier for satellite manufacturers to purchase and integrate.

While the startup already offers a standardised system, many of its earlier projects involved customised engineering, and newer high-power products are still largely manufactured to order during their initial stages.

The longer-term objective is to develop off-the-shelf propulsion units that customers can install without extensive custom engineering.

Such a shift would represent an important change in how the company serves satellite manufacturers.

Instead of designing or modifying a system for each individual project, Aliena could increasingly supply products built around standard specifications.

Its commercial arrangements currently vary by product type.

Components and subsystems can be loaned to customers and are sold only if the associated mission flies. Complete propulsion systems, meanwhile, are sold outright.

This gives the company different ways to work with customers depending on whether they require individual parts or a fully integrated system.

What comes next for Aliena?

The US$5.5 million financing gives Aliena additional resources to pursue several operational priorities at the same time.

Its immediate plans include continued research and development, increased production activity and preparations for entry into the European Union through a local office.

The development of its near-kilowatt thruster is another part of that roadmap, alongside efforts to make propulsion systems more standardised.

But one of the most closely watched aspects of its growth could be its delivery performance.

With a facility capable of producing 100 systems a year, Aliena already has an established manufacturing base in Singapore. Its stated ambition to reduce delivery timelines to six months or less would require further improvements as demand increases.

The challenge now is to turn those production capabilities and technical developments into a business that can serve a broader international customer base.

For a company founded by two doctoral researchers in Singapore, the next stage is increasingly about manufacturing capacity, dependable deliveries and access to customers across multiple markets.

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