Full membership in the ESA is one of the Government's priorities. On this basis, the Slovenian delegation will negotiate with the ESA next month on the content of the Agreement and the conditions of full membership. After the negotiations conclude, by signing and ratifying the Agreement, Slovenia will accede to the Convention for the Establishment of the ESA, which is the basis for full membership of the Republic of Slovenia in the ESA. The signing of this Agreement means that Slovenia will upgrade its membership in this international organisation from associate to full member status.

About full membership in the European Space Agency

Full membership in the ESA brings many advantages for Slovenia, including opportunities to participate in programmes in which the Slovenian space industry has not been able to participate so far (Basic Technology Research Programme and Science Programme), thereby demonstrating the maturity of this industry sector in Slovenia. At the same time, membership also opens the door to cooperation with companies of the ESA member states and other countries, including for commercial projects. It also enables equal participation with other ESA member states in making key decisions. It means a recognition that Slovenia meets the demanding criteria for full membership set by the ESA and greater recognisability of Slovenia in the world as an increasingly important player in the international space industry.

Slovenia's full membership in the ESA brings financial obligations from 2025 onwards, specifically in the form of a one-off amount in 2025 (this amount is subject to negotiation), and an increase in annual contributions to the mandatory ESA programmes in the amount of approximately EUR 1.7 million per year. This will replace the current membership fee of up to EUR 500,000 per year. Payments into optional ESA programmes, including the Requesting Party Activities (RPA), remain unchanged until 2025.

Slovenia's cooperation with the European Space Agency

Slovenia has been cooperating with the European Space Agency (ESA) since 2009, when it signed a Plan for European Cooperating States (PECS) with the ESA. In 2016, it upgraded this cooperation by signing the Association Agreement, thus becoming an associate member of the ESA. In 2020, Slovenia signed the Enhanced Association Agreement, which expires in December 2024. This agreement opened up new cooperation opportunities for Slovenia, including an invitation to tender intended only for Slovenian stakeholders (Requesting Party Activity - RPA) to prepare themselves as thoroughly as possible for closer cooperation with the ESA.

The 2020 Association Agreement enables Slovenia, after the transitional period, to apply for full membership when it fulfils the following criteria:

• a sufficient geographical return of funds (coefficient of return of at least 0.85),
• a proportion of contracts with companies relative to contracts with institutions greater than or at least equal to 0.75%,
• a published national space strategy.

An additional criterion is a seven-year period during which the candidate country has a signed Association Agreement.

At the 2023 Space Summit at the ministerial level on 6 and 7 November 2023, the head of the Slovenian delegation, State Secretary Matevž Frangež, handed over a letter to ESA Director General Josef Aschbacher expressing the intention of the Republic of Slovenia for the ESA to begin the procedure of reviewing Slovenia's readiness to accede to the Convention for the Establishment of the ESA.

After being notified of this intention, the ESA began preparing a review of Slovenia for full membership. After preliminary discussion at key committees, the report was discussed at the ESA Council on 27 March 2024. The ESA Council adopted a decision on consent in principle to the accession of Slovenia to the Convention for the Establishment of the ESA, subject to the successful conclusion of negotiations on the Agreement between the ESA and the Republic of Slovenia regarding the accession of the Republic of Slovenia to the Convention for the Establishment of the ESA and related conditions.

Slovenian space industry

In recent years, Slovenia has managed to build a promising space industry consisting of more than 40 small and medium-sized companies and including development and research institutions and cooperation with various institutions and universities. These have managed to take a leading role in niche areas of the space industry, especially in Earth observation and the development of certain innovative technologies and new materials.

Slovenian companies in the space industry are a promising breakthrough ecosystem in the field of innovation and activities in space and with possible applications on Earth. Three Slovenian satellites in orbit are an important technological achievement.

A Slovenian company has developed key competences in the field of services further down the satellite data processing chain. In the field of test equipment, a Slovenian company has already secured a position as one of the most important players on the market. Slovenian industry is also achieving prominence in the field of miniaturised satellite hardware.

One of the research centres of the European Space Agency has been established in Planica, as a result of the activities of the Jožef Stefan Institute in research that simulates the adaptation of physiological systems to weightlessness (bedrest studies). One of only three human centrifuges of the European Space Agency is also available at the centre for research purposes.

The Slovenian space industry also consists of companies that manufacture miniature cooling systems, high-speed data devices, high-tech mobile structures, advanced communication systems, robotic structures and magnets, and companies with the ability to process large data systems and 3D printing of innovative materials.

However, cooperation with the European Space Agency is not limited to companies in the space industry. Companies that develop innovative technologies and products but are not usually active in space exploration (e.g. innovative propulsion systems, sensors, electronics, 3D printing, robotics, etc.), can also participate.

Catalogue of the Slovenian space industry

Slovenia has a strong space industry and is one of the 49 countries in the world to have a satellite in orbit. In order to find foreign business partners and support our companies, we have prepared a catalogue of the Slovenian space industry.