The appropriation aims to encourage research and development in the extraction of asteroid, making Luxembourg the first nation in Europe to provide funds for space mining.
“We have a first budget to get started but if we need more money, we will be able to provide it,” said Etienne Schneider, Luxembourg’s economy minister, during a press conference.
“Luxembourg’s aim is to be in the top 10 space-faring nations in the world.”
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Last week, legislators took the initial steps of initiating a law that would allow the country to conduct commercial exploitation of asteroids.
Expected to take effect next year, the law provides legal structure that drives investments in space mining, which taps resources from Near Earth Objects (NEOs) such as the asteroids.
The ministry said the law gives operators the right to resources harvested from space in accordance with the international law.
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In compliance with the Outer Space Treaty, the new law requires operators to secure a license from the government, which will also supervise their activities.
“Simultaneously to steps taken on the national level, Luxembourg will strive to promote a legal regulatory framework on the international level supporting investments and growth opportunities for private ventures targeting the utilization of space resources,” Prime Minister Xavier Bettel said.
“The Grand-Duchy aims to participate with other nations in all relevant fora in order to agree on a mutually beneficial international framework.”
The ministry said two United States companies — the Deep Space Industries and the Planetary Resources — have already established “legal entities” in Luxembourg.
Deep Space Industries involves in designing spacecraft for asteroid mining while the Planetary Resources, co-financed by Google’s Larry Page, is into developing exploration satellites.
So far, the U.S. and Luxembourg are the only countries resorting to crafting laws in a bid to cash in on the lucrative business of asteroid mining, an industry that experts say could be worth trillions of dollar.
In November last year, U.S. President Barack Obama signed into law a bill that grants American citizens the right to mine, own and sell any space material, in a groundbreaking move seen as a big boost to asteroid mining.
“This is the single greatest recognition of property rights in history,” said Eric Anderson, co-founder and co-chairman of Planetary Resources, which pioneers the space mining industry.
“This legislation establishes the same supportive framework that created the great economies of history, and will encourage the sustained development of space.”
