Larsen & Toubro, India’s largest private-sector defence manufacturer by revenue, is looking to ramp up its aerospace division to strengthen its foothold in the country’s burgeoning private space sector, a senior executive said on Thursday.
The move follows the government’s recent efforts to open its space industry — traditionally led by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) — to private firms. The success of the Chandrayaan-3 lunar landing and the Aditya-L1 solar mission have created new opportunities for companies with advanced engineering capabilities.
“We clearly see an economy growing out there. How fast it will grow and where the contours will be may be hard to predict, but what we can say for sure is that we are going to leverage our 50 years of relationship with ISRO for manufacturing launch vehicles,” said A.T. Ramchandani, senior vice-president and head of L&T’s Precision Engineering & Systems.
Details of L&T’s expansion plans have not yet been made public. With private firms now eligible to design, build, and operate launch services, companies such as L&T are well-positioned to benefit from the growing demand for commercial satellite launches.
India expects its commercial space industry to be worth $44 billion within the decade and is encouraging private companies to invest in the sector.
L&T has long been involved in building key components for Indian missiles, Mars and lunar missions, satellites and artillery.
It is currently manufacturing the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV), a mainstay of ISRO’s satellite launch program, through a consortium with Hindustan Aeronautics Limited.
The first launch of the privately built PSLV is due in early 2025, with each rocket costing around ₹200 crore ($23.8 million), Ramchandani said.
India’s plan to privatise its Small Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSLV) program — aimed at providing cost-effective launch solutions for smaller payloads of up to 500 kgs — has also drawn interest from L&T and others.
“The whole idea of SSLV is that you should be able to do about 12 launches in a year,” Ramchandani said.
