Surrey Satellite Technology Limited (SSTL), a United Kingdom firm, is opening offices in the United States to more easily enter the U.S. satellite market.

The company wishes to take advantage of the growing international demand for spacecraft for a broad range of applications, according to the firm.

In the United States, the new company, called Surrey Satellite Technology US LLC (SST-US), opened an office in Colorado and later will open offices in California and Washington, D.C., enabling SSTL to work much closer and more efficiently with its customers, the firm stated.

John Paffett, SSTL commercial director, will be CEO of the new company. "The U.S. is the world’s largest satellite market and presents a great opportunity for us," he said. "Surrey Satellite Technology strives to improve and increase the application and utility of small satellites that address the need for operationally responsive space. With budgets coming under increasing pressure, we’ve now reached the point where the price performance of some of these systems is opening up space to a whole new range of customers, applications and services."

Based in Guildford in the United Kingdom, SSTL is owned by the University of Surrey (85 percent), SSTL staff (5 percent), and SpaceX of the USA (10 percent).

SpaceX, though troubled by launch failures, is attempting to develop a private commercial launch service. (Please see Space & Missile Defense Report, Monday, August 4, 2008.)