Riga-based deeptech startup Deep Space Energy has secured €930K in pre-seed funding to advance a radioisotope-based power generator designed for lunar missions and resilient satellite infrastructure. The €350K equity round was led by Outlast Fund with participation from angel investor and NanoAvionics co-founder Linas Sargautis, while an additional €580K came from public contracts and grants from the European Space Agency, NATO DIANA, and the Latvian government. The company is developing a dual-use generator that converts heat from nuclear-waste-derived radioisotopes into electricity using five times less fuel than traditional RTGs, targeting backup power for high-value satellites in MEO, GEO and HEO and, longer term, energy systems for lunar rovers and exploration programmes. The new funding will support further technology development and commercialisation, positioning the company to strengthen Europe’s sovereign space and defence capabilities while preparing for the emerging Moon economy.
Founded in 2022, Deep Space Energy develops radioisotope-based power generation technology for space applications. The company focuses on converting heat from nuclear-decay processes into electricity for use in satellites and future lunar missions. Its work targets dual-use applications, including backup power systems for satellites operating in high orbits and energy solutions designed to support long-duration missions on the Moon. The company participates in European and NATO space and defence innovation programmes and operates from Latvia with a branch in the United Kingdom.
“Our technology, which has already been validated in the laboratory, has several applications across the defence and space sectors. First, we’re developing an auxiliary energy source to enhance the resilience of strategic satellites. It provides the redundancy of satellite power systems by supplying backup power that does not depend on solar energy, making it crucial for high-value military reconnaissance assets,” Ščepanskis says.
The company highlighted that its radioisotope-based energy generator is not designed for any kind of weapons. It will target high-value, dual-use satellites to increase their resilience and operational reliability. The primary focus is on satellites operating in Medium Earth Orbit (MEO), Geostationary Orbit (GEO) and Highly Elliptical Orbit (HEO), which are all critical for modern military reconnaissance and early-warning systems.
Ščepanskis says that the ongoing war in Ukraine clearly demonstrated the decisive role of satellite-based reconnaissance data for modern warfare. In 2025, Ukraine lost its beachhead in Russian Kursk Oblast at a time when the US temporarily terminated the sharing of satellite intelligence. This fact highlights the strategic importance of satellite-based reconnaissance data and also indicates the strategic vulnerability of Europe, which largely relies on the US defence space assets, especially for high-value GEO satellites.
“As Europe is trying to become more independent, it is imperative to produce satellites with advanced capabilities on our own. Our technology provides an auxiliary energy source for satellites, which makes them more resilient to non-kinetic attacks and malfunctions,” he adds.
In the long term, the company aims to focus on the Moon economy. The radioisotope power generator will address critical energy challenges in the next phase of lunar exploration, including NASA and ESA’s Artemis, Argonaut and lunar rover programmes, as well as the Moon Village framework. In particular, the technology is designed to support lunar night survival and operations in permanently shadowed regions, enabling extended scouting and prospecting missions.
On the Moon, where the temperatures at night drop below 150 degrees Celsius, and nights last for roughly 354 hours, moonrovers can’t rely on solar power.
The company’s technology requires approximately 2kg of Americium-241 fuel to generate 50W of power for a lunar rover, compared with around 10kg of radioisotope material needed by legacy RTG systems for comparable output. Given current projections that Americium-241 production capacity will reach around 10kg per year by the mid-2030s, this efficiency could enable lunar exploration missions to begin more than five years earlier and at up to five times the mission volume.
As a result, commercial lunar activities and resource utilisation could emerge significantly sooner than previously expected.
According to Ščepanskis, the company’s technology can significantly enhance the economics of moon rover missions by enabling them to last multiple day-night cycles up to a few years. The sole expenses of bringing payload to the Moon cost up to a million euros per kilogram; thus, by enhancing the lifetime of the rovers, the company helps to save hundreds of millions.
Egita Poļanska, partner at the lead investor Outlast Fund, says that the company’s direction aligns with the fund’s strategic goals.
“Space energy tech has been stuck with certain limitations for decades, but we’re finally seeing the pieces come together for a real breakthrough – new materials, smarter power systems, and actual commercial demand for lunar operations. Deep Space Energy is building the infrastructure that will literally power the next chapter of space exploration and industry. As Europe ramps up its space ambitions, we need our own companies to lead in these foundational technologies. We’re thrilled to back this team and honestly pretty excited to have an actual moonshot in our portfolio, in the most literal sense possible,” she says.
Linas Sargautis has also participated in the round and joined the company’s leadership team as an advisor, emphasising that such investments put the Baltics in the spotlight as an emerging space hub.
“The Baltic region is increasingly recognised for its innovation in space technology, with Deep Space Energy serving as another strong example. By supporting Deep Space Energy, we are helping to establish a solid foundation for the future of space frontier exploration, such as lunar and deep-space missions, expanding humanity’s knowledge and footprint, while also contributing to European space defence capabilities,” Sargautis says. “I am proud to support the company’s journey by strengthening the team’s connections with leading space systems integrators, as well as supporting the company’s expansion and contracting plans to build the necessary expertise at the subsystem integration level.”
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Read the orginal article: https://arcticstartup.com/deep-space-energy-raises-e930k/
