Tenders Are Invited For Provides An Ad-Hoc Partnership Scheme, Whereby Private Companies Receive Support From Esa For The Development Of Commercial Cargo Transportation Services

Tenders are invited for provides an ad-hoc partnership scheme, whereby private companies receive support from ESA for the development of commercial cargo transportation services to human outposts in LEO. Phase 1 AUTONOMOUS LEO ACCELERATED DEMO DOCKING TO ISS NODE (ALADDIN) Tender Action Number: 1-13217 Activity Number: 1000044567 Clarification Request Deadline 23/04/2026 13:00 CET Closing Date Extension Request Deadline 23/04/2026 13:00 CET Announcement Date 08/01/2026 Last Update On 02/03/2026 14:48 CET Update Reason Tender Action Issued The LEO Cargo Return Service (LCRS) provides an ad-hoc partnership scheme, whereby private companies receive support from ESA for the development of commercial cargo transportation services to human outposts in LEO. Phase 1 of the LEO Cargo Return Service (LCRS), currently ongoing until June 2026 with two parallel contracts, covers the early development phases. The subject Phase 2 (ALADDIN) will complete the development and lead to the execution of up to two demonstration missions to the International Space Station (ISS). The original intention was for the LCRS demonstration mission to deliver cargo to the ISS by 2030. Per the current information, the operations and timeline of the ISS de-orbiting require that the demonstration missions to the ISS be executed within Q2/2029,because after that timeframe no docking port will be available for an LCRS vehicle. This activity is now named ALADDIN (Autonomous LEO Accelerated Demo Docking to ISS Node), to underline the fact that the primary objective is to award contracts targeting an early demonstration mission on ISS.However, in recognition of the challenges associated with this target launch date, the ALADDIN Invitation to Tender will give bidders the possibility to submit proposal(s) for:- a demonstration mission to the ISS by mid-2029, and/or- a demonstration mission to a future Commercial LEO Destination (CLD) by the end of 2031.Given that no specific details about the CLDs are available at this time, bidders selecting the second scope will be asked to base their proposals on the ISS requirements. The ALADDIN contractual phasing through slices is foreseen as follows:Slice I, from October 2026 up to and including Q4/2028.Slice II, from Q1/2029 up to and including the demonstration mission. Read less Directorate Estabilishment ESTEC Open Date 02/03/2026 14:44 CET Closing Date 07/05/2026 13:00 CET ECOS Required No Classified No Price Range > 500 KEURO Authorised Contact Person Anze Singer Initiating Service HRE-OC IP Measure N/A Prog. Reference E/0121-04Q - LCRS E3P4 Tender Type Open Competition Open To Tenderers From BE+CA+CH+CZ+DE+DK+EE+GR+ES+FI+FR+GB+HU+IE+IT+LU+LV+NO+PL+PT+SE+SI Technology Keywords 26-OTHERS Products Keywords 3-D-1-g-Other Tender Link : https://esastar-publication-ext.sso.esa.int/ESATenderActions/filter/open