New Zealand-headquartered Zenno Astronautics (Zenno), the space superconductor company, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with ANA Trading to deploy Zenno’s superconducting technologies for space applications in the Japanese market. 

ANA Trading is a member of ANA Group, Japan’s leading airline group. With the slogan “Next Stop, Space”, ANA Group has identified the expansion of its business field into space as one of its strategic priorities.

Under the terms of the agreement, ANA Trading, with deep knowledge of aerospace industries, will create business opportunities in Japan for Zenno that contribute to the Japanese space industry. The initial focus is to deploy Zenno’s Z01 superconducting magnetic torquers for high-precision satellite positioning in the Japanese market.

Z01 scales to address demanding positioning requirements for satellites – from 50kg and up to space station sized – and the ongoing need for satellites to reposition in orbit to maximise commercial value.

In the future, the partnership will collaborate to bring an exciting roadmap of other technologies to the market, opening up new possibilities and increasing the competitiveness of the Japanese space industry.

Zenno co-founder and CEO Max Arshavsky says, “We are excited to be part of the Japanese space ecosystem with our partnership with ANA Trading. This collaboration will accelerate our growth in the Japanese market and supports Zenno’s vision to build for life in space.

“Our mission is to create enabling and highly scalable technologies that will allow humanity to prosper in space without dependence on Earth’s resources, such as the need for fuel, radiation shielding, and frequent resupply of spacecraft in orbit.”