Virgin Orbit to Sell Assets to Rocket Lab, Launcher, and Stratolaunch in Bankruptcy Deal

Rocket Lab, Launcher, and Stratolaunch have won bids to purchase assets from Virgin Orbit, according to new bankruptcy filings on Tuesday. The auction took place on May 22, and the sale hearing is set for 2 p.m. on Wednesday, May 24 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware.

Rocket Lab is the successful bidder for Virgin Orbit’s factory in Long Beach, California, including the machinery, equipment, and lease. The smallsat launcher bid $16.1 million on the factory on Conant Street. 

Launcher Inc., which is developing rockets and orbital transfer vehicles, is the successful bidder for the facility in Mojave, California, including the lease, machinery, equipment, and inventory, for $2.7 million. Launcher is owned by commercial space station company Vast. 

Stratolaunch, which designs hypersonic vehicles, is the successful bidder for Cosmic Girl, a modified Boeing 747 that was used in Virgin Orbit’s air-launch method. It is a $17 million stalking horse bid. Stratolaunch is developing air-launch technologies for hypersonic vehicles. 

There is also a provisional deal for liquidation firm Inliper to acquire equipment for $650,000. All together, the bids total about $36.5 million. The company’s 2021 special purpose acquisition (SPAC) deal valued Virgin Orbit at $3.2 billion.

Virgin Orbit filed for bankruptcy in early April, and previously indicated it had received multiple bids that would continue operating the company. Virgin Orbit laid off most of its employees in late March.

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