Epic Aerospace Expands Its Facilities in Zonamerica

With infrastructure comparable to that used by the space agencies of Brazil and Argentina, EPIC AEROSPACE is expanding its Operations in Zonamerica with a facility capable of manufacturing, assembling, and testing space vehicles.

The inauguration was attended by the President of the Republic, Yamandú Orsi; the Minister of Industry, Energy, and Mining, Fernanda Cardona; the Acting Minister of Defense, Joel Rodríguez; the National Director of Industries, Adrián Míguez; and the mayor of Rocha, Alejo Umpiérrez, as well as Álvaro Brunini, president of the National Agency for Research and Innovation (ANII); Alejandro Ferrari, Manager of Investments & Post-Investment at Uruguay XXI; Ignacio Belieres Montero, CEO and Founder of EPIC AEROSPACE; Martín Dovat, General Manager of Zonamerica; and Joaquín Garín, Director of Production at Satellogic, who participated in a panel discussion.

The company's expansion, which includes the addition of a 300-kN shaker—the first of this size used by a private company in Latin America and one of only a few in the world—is supported by ANII. This equipment will enable the company to test the performance of satellites weighing up to 2,500 kilograms.

Dovat welcomed the event and noted that “it is initiatives like these that inspire us all. Companies that choose Uruguay put us to the test, discover talent and a favorable business climate, invest, and then double down—they inspire us. At Zonamerica, we are proud to be part of this initiative that fosters innovation, access to capital, technology transfer, and the creation of sustainable jobs.”

Meanwhile, Belieres Montero commented that “we set out to go a step further with our factory in Uruguay and build a testing facility that would be commensurate with the scale of our operations. We knew we needed to be able to carry out the entire cycle from here, and thanks to ANII and Zonamerica, we’ve created facilities that any space agency would envy.”

Brunini, for his part, explained that the agency seeks to invest in public policies that “generate growth, foster greater development in our country, and have a positive impact on the population. To achieve this, we must create quality jobs and invest more in the integration of science, technology, and innovation. Companies like these, which contribute research and an entrepreneurial mindset, encourage us to support them.”

For his part, Garín highlighted the growth of the aerospace industry, both internationally and nationally. “To advance this type of technology, we need to develop human capital, and that exists in Uruguay, where more and more people are able to study science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, thereby generating knowledge in the country. Uruguay is the second country in the Americas to have launched the most satellites into space, and they came from right here on this block—built by Uruguayans, technicians, engineers, and local professionals—and that is a source of pride.”

Ferrari concluded his remarks by saying, “We want the country to be seen not only as a business hub, but also as a center for business and innovation. These projects demonstrate that we can rise to the new challenge, which is to move from being a country with individual success stories to truly having a platform that can foster new companies that connect with one another and create more links throughout this entire space industry chain.”

EPIC AEROSPACE is a startup founded by Ignacio Belieres Montero, an Argentine entrepreneur, that specializes in the development of satellite transfer and orbit-deployment vehicles and has provided testing services to various clients in Europe, the Americas, and the Asia-Pacific region.

The event served as the platform to unveil CHIMERA GEO 2, an orbital transfer vehicle (OTV) that will function as a space tug and will be assembled in Uruguay. This type of vehicle is essential for communications, meteorology, and numerous strategic applications.

With a mass exceeding 700 kilograms, its launch will position Uruguay as the first country in Latin America capable of transporting cargo from a rideshare mission in low Earth orbit (LEO) to geostationary orbit (GEO), reducing costs from US$100 million to less than US$10 million and cutting transit times from years to a few months.