By Joey Roulette
WASHINGTON, Aug 14 (Reuters) - U.S. rocket company Astra Space is seeking to raise $250 million at a $1 billion valuation in a funding round expected to close this quarter, CEO Chris Kemp said in an interview, as the company looks to rebound from years of financial struggles.
The California-based company has approached investors in recent months, pitching new growth opportunities and financing strategies aimed at expanding its mobile-launch rocket program and spacecraft propulsion
business as it seeks to evolve into a broader "space platform company," according to an email from an Astra fundraising adviser seen by Reuters.
Once valued at more than $2 billion after going public in 2021, Astra was taken private in 2024 at just $11.25 million following repeated launch failures.
Astra's latest fundraising push marks its first since an $80 million raise last year used to cover legal costs, settle shareholder lawsuits and refinance the company after its troubled rocket program forced it private.
While much of the space industry has focused on developing reusable rockets such as SpaceX's Falcon 9 and Rocket Lab's upcoming Neutron, Astra is betting on low-cost, expendable launch vehicles. The company aims to offer militaries the ability to rapidly launch satellites from dispersed locations, making space assets less vulnerable to attack by adversaries.
"I can have hundreds of spaceports, and you don't even know where they are, nor does China," CEO Chris Kemp told Reuters.
Kemp scrapped the company's original rocket after only two successful launches out of six attempts and is now betting on Rocket 4, a larger expendable vehicle targeting launches from 2027.
Astra is also relying on its growing satellite propulsion business, which has sold hundreds of thrusters, while touting Rocket 4's projected $5 million launch price as significantly cheaper than rival offerings, Kemp said.
(Reporting by Joey Roulette; Editing by Joe Brock and Cynthia Osterman)
