EU space policy: Boosting EU competitiveness and accelerating the twin ecological and digital transition

Summary:

Over the past decade, space has gained increasing importance as an economic sector offering opportunities for established and emerging markets. Space policies and their applications have also gained in political relevance due to their capacity to tackle global challenges, such as the climate and biodiversity crises, but also due to the growing reliance of the EU economy and society on space infrastructure, services and data. Pursuant to Article 189 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), space is a shared competence of the EU and its Member States.

EU space policy has two overarching goals: on the one hand, promoting scientific and industrial competitiveness with a view to nurturing EU spatial ecosystems and ensuring EU autonomy in space; on the other, increasingly harnessing space investments and services to address key EU political priorities such as the European Green Deal and the Digital Decade. This briefing focuses on the state of play in regard to the EU's space economy, while also examining the EU's reliance on space services. Specifically, it highlights the relevance of the EU in the global space market and looks at the ways the EU could boost its use of space data and services to deliver on its main political priorities.

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