Iodine propulsion firm ThrustMe reaches 25 satellite constellations

(SpaceEnergy) French electric propulsion developer ThrustMe says its iodine-fuelled thrusters now equip more than 25 satellite constellations across Europe, North America and Asia.

The Essonne, France-based company said it has delivered more than 500 propulsion systems, with 242 units launched across more than 85 satellites for over 50 customers. Its systems have accumulated more than 22,000 hours of in-orbit manoeuvring.

ThrustMe said production has doubled annually since it opened industrial manufacturing in 2023 and has reached an average output of one propulsion system per day.

Its current products include the NPT30-I2 gridded ion thruster and JPT150-I2 Hall-effect thruster, both using iodine rather than conventional xenon propellant.

The company said iodine helps avoid some supply-chain and handling constraints associated with xenon while enabling compact propulsion systems for stationkeeping, collision avoidance and constellation management.

ThrustMe is preparing an in-orbit demonstration of its next-generation JPT150-I2 Hall-effect thruster for the first quarter of 2027.