In a significant milestone for India’s rapidly growing private Space ecosystem, Dhruva Space will supply its Solis+ space-grade solar panels for Pixxel’s upcoming hyperspectral satellite constellation.
Pixxel is a Space data company and spacecraft manufacturer redefining Earth observation with hyperspectral imaging. With the successful launch of its first three commercial hyperspectral satellites, Fireflies, it’s building a constellation of 18-24 satellites designed for a daily revisit frequency anywhere on Earth.
Dhruva Space designs and develops small satellites and key subsystems, including Space-grade solar panels. Its Solis+ panels are engineered for high-performance power generation in orbit. Built with high-efficiency (up to 30%) triple-junction GaAs solar cells, the panels are designed to operate reliably in the extreme conditions of Space. Manufactured in-house at Dhruva Space’s facility in Hyderabad, these panels offer power capacities in the range of several kilowatts, making them ideal for larger classes of satellites and spacecraft.
After a successful delivery to the Indian government in November 2024, Dhruva is now exporting to countries like the United Arab Emirates, Austria, Australia, and France
“Power systems are mission-critical, and there’s no room for errors in space. As we expand our capabilities, we’re building with partners who bring deep technical ability and a shared focus on mission readiness, and Dhruva Space exemplifies both,” said Kshitij Khandelwal, founder and chief technology officer, Pixxel. “This collaboration reflects a shared drive to engineering excellence and a commitment to delivering high-quality, accessible satellite data to those tackling global challenges. It also marks an important step in strengthening India’s space hardware ecosystem and building resilient infrastructure to support critical needs on Earth.”
“This partnership represents the best of India’s NewSpace capabilities coming together,” adds Abhay Egoor, chief technology officer & co-founder, Dhruva Space. “There are very few players globally who design, manufacture, qualify, and export Space-grade solar panels, and Dhruva Space is among them…Two high-performance players from India’s private Space sector collaborating at this level signals the maturing of the ecosystem. This is not just a hardware agreement; it’s a signal to the global market that Indian Space-Tech companies are building with flight heritage, scalability, and export readiness in mind.”
Dhruva Space is currently setting up a first-of-its-kind Spacecraft manufacturing facility in South Asia, spread across 6.5 acres with a built-up area of 280,000 sq. ft. Of the total area, 30,000 square-feet is dedicated to the design and development of Space-grade solar arrays, while 40,000 square-feet will serve as a full-fledged Assembly, Integration & Testing (AIT) zone with parallel bays for simultaneous integration of spacecraft of up to 500 kg classes.
“This facility is a major step toward Dhruva Space’s goal of enabling vertical integration and scalable spacecraft production from Indian soil,” said Egoor.
Pixxel’s upcoming constellation will deliver the world’s highest-resolution hyperspectral imagery, enabling industries to detect, monitor, and predict critical global phenomena across agriculture, oil and gas, mining, environment, and other sectors with 50x richer detail than conventional satellites. The company has raised $95 million from M&G Catalyst, Glade Brook Capital Partners, Google, Aditya Birla Ventures, Google, Lightspeed, Radical Ventures and others.
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