Aircraft carrier VMS Eve releases VSS Unity spacecraft before firing its rocket engine during the Unity 25 spaceflight on May 25, 2023.
Virgo Galactic
Virgo Galactic successfully raised $300 million through an “on the market” offering of common stock, the company announced Thursday in a securities filing.
Now the space tourism company is looking to raise another $400 million through a subsequent equity offering as it seeks to fund the development and expansion of its spacecraft fleet.
Shares of Virgin Galactic have risen since the company announced plans to launch its first commercial spaceflight by the end of this month.
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The company opened its first fundraiser on Aug. 4, saying at the time that the money “would be used for general corporate purposes, including working capital, general and administrative affairs, development of its starship fleet and other infrastructure to scale its commercial operations.”
Virgin Galactic had a total of $874 million in cash and securities at the end of the first quarter, it reported in May.
The company has a single-carrier aircraft, VMS Eve, and one spacecraft, VSS Unity, which it has said can perform flights as many as once a month.
But Virgin Galactic’s growth depends on its ability to expand its fleet with the Delta-class vehicles it’s developing, and the common stock offering is one way to halt its cashburn until those spacecraft take flight.