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Estonia's minister of foreign trade and entrepreneurship, Anne Sulling, and the Director General of the European Space Agency (ESA), Jean-Jacques Dordain, on Wednesday signed Estonia's accession agreement with ESA in Paris.
Estonia signs European Space Agency accession agreement
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After the agreement has been ratified, Estonia will become the agency's 21st member state.
«Becoming a member state of the European Space Agency and the successful cooperation that preceded it prove that Estonia is a capable agent in the space field. As a full member Estonia can further develop through the space programs of ESA its high-tech skills and knowledge, and our entrepreneurs and scientists will also have new opportunities for cooperation with the top of the European space industry,» Sulling said.
She added that Estonia takes its new status very seriously and that it is important that as a result of joining the agency Estonian economy would get back as much as possible through ESA procurements.
Dordain welcomed Estonia joining the agency. «Estonia has already successfully taken part in many ESA programs, especially in the fields of space science, Earth observation, materials science and space technology. By becoming a member state new perspectives will open for Estonia. I welcome Estonia as a member of the space community and I support Estonia getting as much from joining the ESA as possible,» he said.
Upon joining the ESA, Estonia will have to pay a one-off accession fee of 600,000 euros which has been included in the budget of the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications. The annual membership fee thereafter is 870,000 euros.
Upon Estonia's becoming a full member of the agency, a six-year transition period will begin on Jan. 1, 2016 during which the ESA guarantees 500,000 euros' worth of orders to Estonia. The purpose of the transition period is to prepare the Estonian industry and research for entry into the space industry.
As a member of the ESA, Estonia can through different programs employ and develop its high-tech knowledges and skills in the field of space technology, Sulling has earlier said.