Taiwan’s space agency has selected Italian launch provider Avio to deploy four Earth observation satellites under its FORMOSAT programme, strengthening international cooperation in satellite launch services and marking a key step in Taiwan’s expanding space ambitions.
The Taiwan Space Agency (TASA) confirmed that Avio will be responsible for launching the FORMOSAT-8C and 8D satellites, as well as the FORMOSAT-9A and 9B spacecraft. The missions will be carried out using the Vega C rocket from the Guiana Space Centre in French Guiana.
Avio disclosed on Dec. 19 that it had secured two launch contracts with a combined value exceeding €100 million, though it did not identify the customers at the time. Two days earlier, TASA published a tender award notice indicating that Avio had been selected to support four satellites within its Earth observation programme, with a maximum project budget of NTD 2.56 billion (around €69 million).
The FORMOSAT-8 programme consists of six high-resolution optical Earth observation satellites. The first was launched aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket in November, while the next spacecraft, FORMOSAT-8B, is scheduled for launch in December 2026. Launch timelines for the remaining satellites have not yet been announced.
The FORMOSAT-9 system will comprise two synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellites, planned for launch in 2028 and 2030. All four missions awarded to Avio will fly on the Vega C launcher, which returned to service in December 2024 after a two-year grounding following a 2022 failure.
Speaking at a media briefing after the 342nd European Space Agency Council meeting, ESA’s acting Director of Space Transportation, Toni Tolker-Nielsen, said the pace of future Vega C missions would depend largely on customer readiness. “It’s more a question of payloads than availability of rockets,” he said.
