Satellite launch: HEUKING provides procurement law guidance for the SeRANIS research project all the way to space

From the very beginning, the HEUKING-team of Dr. Ute Jasper, Christina Emde and Julian Groenick from the Public Sector and Procurement practice advised the stakeholders on structuring the SeRANIS research project under procurement law. In his speech, Prof. Andreas Knopp thanked HEUKING, saying its innovative and fast procurement procedures had played a key role in the success of the ATHENE-1 mission.

On October 1, 2026, the ATHENE-1 research satellite of the University of the Bundeswehr Munich (UniBw M) launched successfully into space. An event at the German Aerospace Center (DLR) in Oberpfaffenhofen accompanied the launch. It was hosted by Prof. Andreas Knopp, head of the SeRANIS research program at the University of the Bundeswehr Munich, and Prof. Felix Huber, director of DLR Space Operations and Astronaut Training.

The SeRANIS project combines space research with the testing of innovative communication technologies in the context of New Space. The satellite launch is an important step for German space research.

For many years, HEUKING's "Public Sector and Procurement" practice group has been one of the market leaders in procurement law. Its lawyers hold top positions in the relevant German and international legal rankings. Since 1991, they have advised on public sector procurements, restructurings, major projects and cooperation arrangements. They have supported several hundred major projects of the federal government, the states, municipalities and their subsidiaries, with a total volume of more than 40 billion Euro. To date, none of these procedures has been successfully challenged.