Interview with MaiaSpace CEO Yohann Leroy
MaiaSpace is a subsidiary of ArianeGroup that is developing a two-stage partially reusable rocket called Maia. As MaiaSpace pushes toward a 2026 debut of Maia, I had the opportunity to sit down with CEO Yohann Leroy and dive into the details of their journey.
As a preamble to some of the first few questions, MaiaSpace will be utilizing a number of key technologies developed for the ESA-contracted Themis reusable booster demonstrator being developed by ArianeGroup. You can read more about Themis here.
How much of the Themis booster demonstrator will MaiaSpace be utilizing for the first stage of Maia?
Our global approach is to leverage, when relevant, European existing expertise, rather than reinventing the wheel. This includes the expertise developed by European players in the frame of ESA programs, like the Themis program. Therefore, the companies that are involved in the Themis program are natural candidates to become partners of MaiaSpace if they can meet our performance and cost targets. We have had promising discussions with several of them for our first stage recoverability and will communicate in due time about such partnerships.
Is the first stage for the first flight of Maia going to be built from scratch, or will it utilize components already built by ArianeGroup for the programme?
MaiaSpace designs, develops, builds, and tests its rocket, including the first stage in an autonomous manner. As a matter of fact, we received a couple of months ago the first elements of the first prototype of the first stage that we have been integrating in our proto factory in Vernon, Normandie, and that we will test in the coming months.
Will the first test flights of Themis be part of certifying Maia for flight?
No, they are not. We intend to start launch operations with our expendable version from French Guiana in 2026. Our goal is to enter the launch market as soon as possible in order to recoup faster our investments. The technological bricks that need to be mastered to perform first stage recovery and reuse will be progressively demonstrated from that point on, and we target the first vertical recovery of the first stage on a barge at sea in 2028.
Can you tell me approximately when in 2025 the initial hot fire tests of the Maia upper stage will begin?
We target a first hot fire test in the second half of 2025.
I have heard talk about a suborbital test flight. Can you tell me more about this flight and when it is likely to occur?
We target a test flight in the first half of 2026, the exact configuration of which is still to be confirmed. It will most likely be a suborbital flight. Our approach is to test our rocket in flight as early as possible, following our test & learn iterative approach. We are convinced we will go faster this way, rather than spending time in the lab making sure the first flight reaches 100% of our performance targets. In short, we are ready to trade lift-off performance for time saving, knowing that we will quickly recover our performance afterward. What’s important is to stick to our objective of starting commercial operations in the second half of 2026, and we’re on track to reach this goal.
Instead of reusability being used as a tool for reducing costs, MaiaSpace has focused on using the technology to target two optimized satellite market segments. Is this because the overall payload capacity of Maia is too small to make a noticeable impact on costs? Or is it that MaiaSpace doesn’t envision achieving the launch cadence necessary to make the reusability equation work?
MaiaSpace’s business model has been built from the very beginning on the utilization of 2 launcher versions (expendable and reusable) for the development costs of one. The launcher’s performance in SSO is 500kg for the reusable version and 1.5t for the expendable version. As we can see, for a mini-launcher like ours, the performance penalty linked to first stage recovery is significant, much higher than for a heavier launcher. Still, we are convinced reusability is necessary for the business plan of a rocket of this category to be viable. Reusability is a means to optimize the fill rate of our launches. If a satellite requires only a fraction of the lift-off capacity, we can use the performance left to bring the first stage back, hence reducing our costs and giving us the ability to reduce our price. Doing so, we have two commercial “sweet spots” instead of one and are competitive on a much larger market segment than any expendable launcher (which would need to be close to 100% fill rate to be competitive).
We are developing a cost-efficient kick-stage called “Colibri” with exactly the same reasoning. Colibri is providing at least 1 ton (SSO) of additional performance on each version while increasing mission flexibility and space mobility services offers. With our large 3.5-m fairing, this enlarges our (competitively) addressable market further. More specifically, our launcher is perfectly suited as a complementary and competitive solution to heavy launchers for the deployment and replenishment of broadband satellite constellations, notably the European Commission's upcoming IRIS2 constellation.
Thanks to a larger addressable market, we will launch more often than if our rocket was only expendable with a single commercial sweet spot. Our recurring costs will decrease faster, and our investments will be recouped faster, making the overall equation much easier to solve.
In an expendable configuration, Maia will be capable of delivering 1,500 kg to LEO and 500 kg to LEO when it's being recovered. You have also spoken about the performance of the launcher being boosted with the addition of a kick stage. Can you tell me the maximum payload capacity of Maia with a kick stage? I remember talk about up to 3,000 kg. Is that accurate?
Indeed, MaiaSpace’s launcher is able to deliver 1,500 kg to SSO in its expendable version, and 500 kg in SSO in its reusable version. The addition of our Colibri Kick-stage boosts the overall performance by at least 1 ton (i.e. 2,500 kg and 1,500 kg in SSO for the expendable and the reusable versions, respectively). If we target inclined orbits, performance is higher and can reach 4 tons in LEO.
In 2026, MaiaSpace will launch its first rocket. How many other launches are you targeting for 2026?
We target our first test flight by mid 2026, and to start commercial operations by the end of 2026.
After 2026, how quickly will you be able to ramp up to a full launch cadence of 20 launches per year?
We plan to reach our full launch rate capacity of about 20 launches per year in 2031, so we will have a 5-year ramp-up phase.
Will the Guiana Space Centre be able to support 20 launches per year?
CNES is best placed to answer this question. Our baseline is to perform all our launches from French Guyana to optimize the use of our assets there.
Have you started renovations of the Soyuz launch facility yet? When in 2025 are you targeting to complete the work?
Since the end of 2024, teams have started the preparatory work to be done on the former Soyuz launch pad to match our needs. This includes the installation of a liquid methane fueling system and launch pad mechanical adaptations. The manufacturing of the erector mast that will also serve as transporter and pallet has already started. We will conduct all these adaptations in 2025 to be ready for combined tests in early 2026.
Has MaiaSpace purchased or begun construction of the droneship that will be used for landings? Can you share the name of the supplier?
After design work and several tradeoffs, MaiaSpace is about to select a supplier to build and operate the droneship, with the start of manufacturing this year.
When is the first landing on a droneship expected to occur?
We will start flying with the expendable version in 2026 and we will progressively demonstrate reusability technology bricks from this point on. We target a full demonstration of the vertical recovery of the Main stage on a barge at sea in 2028.
Airbus and Safran have invested €125 million through ArianeGroup into MaiaSpace thus far. Are you expecting additional funding from them in 2025?
Additional funding is required for the project to go through and will be brought in due time, as for any other privately-funded project, if we can convince Airbus and Safran, who know the launch market very well, that the technical and commercial conditions for success are gathered. Based on our technical achievements and market feedback, and thanks to the team we have built, we are confident this will be the case.
How much financing will MaiaSpace require approximately to scale up to its 20 launches per year?
We will not give precise numbers, but such programs typically require several hundred million euros to fund development, but also commercial and industrial ramp-up.
Have you secured any launch contracts yet? If so, can you give me a ballpark estimate of the current total value of launch contracts secured by MaiaSpace?
We have signed several non-binding contracts so far. Beyond this, the commercial momentum is very strong and confirms the relevancy of our launcher and of our commercial strategy. We currently have very advanced discussions with several customers and expect to sign our first binding commercial contracts very soon.