State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation
Bern, May 17, 2022 – On May 17, 2022, State Secretary Martina Hirayama and Josef Aschbacher, Director General of the European Space Agency ESA, signed a cooperation agreement between Switzerland and ESA to establish a joint competence center at the Paul Scherrer Institute (PSI).
This center, called ESDI for European Space Deep-Tech Innovation Centre, aims to help improve the transition from academia to the private sector. It is planned to create thematic project platforms as the basic structure of the ESDI, in which partners inside and outside of Switzerland should be involved. The areas of materials research, data management and data processing, quantum technologies and the area of sustainable space ecosystems were identified as the first topics for these platforms. The ESDI should play a coordinating role and enable projects with a network of partners in universities and industry in Switzerland and the ESA member states.
At the signing ceremony, State Secretary Hirayama emphasized in her speech that the support of the ESA and its member states for the ESDI is recognition of Switzerland as a reliable and competitive partner. However, the establishment of the ESDI is also a request for Switzerland to get even more involved in space travel, so that it can do its part in the face of the challenges that Europe wants to face.
The event at the PSI can be seen as a starting point for the development of an in-depth implementation concept with the aim of discussing financial resources at the upcoming ESA Council meeting at ministerial level in November 2022, which will enable projects to be carried out by the ESDI from 2023. During the ceremony, ESA Director General Josef Aschbacher emphasized that the mix of infrastructures and competences within the ETH Domain are of particular interest to ESA for space travel, and that the large-scale facilities, which are unique in the world, would make PSI ideal for locating at PSI.
Switzerland is a founding member of the ESA and makes an annual contribution of around 190 million Swiss francs to its programs and activities. The scientific excellence and the technical innovations in the national space sector as well as the close cooperation between the research institutes and the industry are essential factors for the economic growth. Through its membership in the ESA and through its participation in EU programs, Switzerland makes a significant contribution to European space travel. She can compete internationally in this sector and makes unique contributions.
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