Luxembourg Announces Plans to Invest in Space Resources Utilization, June 2016

The Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister of Luxembourg, Xavier Bettel and Etienne Schneider, held a press conference on June 3, 2016 to announce plans to pass a law and invest in companies that want to mine asteroids and other solar system bodies.   Schneider, who is also the Minister of Economy, said the country has opened a 200 million Euro line of credit and more money will be provided if necessary.  It already has an agreement with the U.S. asteroid mining company Deep Space Industries and will soon sign an agreement with the other U.S. asteroid mining company Planetary Resources Inc.  Former ESA Director General Jean-Jacques Dordain and former NASA Ames Center Director Pete Worden serve on Luxembourg’s advisory board for its spaceresources.lu initiative and joined Bettel and Schneider at the press conference.

SpacePolicyOnline.com published a summary of the press conference, with a link to the archived webcast, on June 5, 2016.