NASA has awarded Intuitive Machines, Inc. (Nasdaq: LUNR, LUNRW)
(“Intuitive Machines”) (“Company”) $30 million as a prime
contractor to complete a Lunar Terrain Vehicle Services Feasibility
Assessment. The contract tasks the Company’s global team with
creating a feasibility roadmap to develop and deploy a Lunar
Terrain Vehicle (“LTV”) on the Moon using Intuitive Machines’
Nova-D cargo-class lunar lander. The first phase award marks the
Company’s entrance into human spaceflight operations within NASA’s
$4.6 billion LTV Services project.
“This procurement strategically aligns with the Company’s
flight-proven capability to deliver payloads to the surface of the
Moon under the agency’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services
initiative, further solidifying our position as a proven commercial
contractor in lunar exploration,” said Intuitive Machines CEO Steve
Altemus. “Our global team is on a path to provide essential lunar
infrastructure services to NASA in a project that would allow the
Company to retain ownership of the vehicle for commercial
utilization during periods of non-NASA activity over approximately
ten years of lunar surface activity.”
Intuitive Machines’ Moon Reusable Autonomous Crewed Exploration
Rover (RACER) global team partners, including AVL, Boeing,
Michelin, and Northrop Grumman, intend to provide a robust LTV
design architecture with advanced power management, autonomous
driving, communications, and navigation systems for lunar
exploration.
The Company believes the Moon RACER team is the most
comprehensively equipped choice for delivering and deploying a
lunar terrain vehicle that meets NASA requirements. As the prime
contractor, Intuitive Machines intends to apply its experience as
the only United States commercial company to deliver science and
technology data from the surface of the Moon to lead systems
integration, spacecraft design, energy management, avionics,
autonomous navigation, sensors, controls, mission planning,
operations, and training with the following teammate
capabilities.
AVL, a global mobility technology company and
automotive industry leader in the development, simulation, and
testing of vehicle systems brings its expertise in battery electric
vehicles, propulsion solutions and autonomous driving.
Specifically, AVL will focus on drivetrain, steering and suspension
to help make lunar surface mobility a reality. AVL’s scalable
expert development tools and technologies will help design, test
and power a lunar terrain vehicle in extreme environments
associated with the Moon and beyond.
Boeing will lead the design of the LTV system
and support the overall design, fabrication, testing, integration,
mission planning, and operations of the flight vehicle and both
static and dynamic mockups.
Michelin will leverage the experience gained
from previous collaborations with NASA and its expertise in airless
technology and high-tech materials to take up the challenge of
designing a lunar wheel able to operate at temperatures above 100°C
and below -240°C, withstand exposure to solar and galactic
radiation, ensure maximum longevity and traction on aggressive
loose soil. Michelin believes that the technical developments and
scientific advances that will be made as part of this project will
enable the Group to continue to innovate in terrestrial
applications.
Northrop Grumman will leverage its experience
in power systems, other vehicle systems, and mission planning and
training.
The Lunar Terrain Vehicle Services vehicle is a major element in
returning humans to the lunar surface under NASA’s Artemis campaign
and demonstrating continued American leadership in space
exploration.
NASA’s LTV Services project contract holds a total program value
of more than $4 billion and is structured across two phases with
multiple potential awardees. Intuitive Machines expects to bid on
the phase two LTV services award after completing the phase one
feasibility assessment award. The phase two award is earmarked for
developing, delivering, and operating the LTV to the Moon. As the
Company continues demonstrating its capability and reliability in
lunar operations, the LTV services award is anticipated to focus on
continuously delivering infrastructure supporting both NASA’s
Artemis campaign and commercial interests.
About Intuitive Machines
Intuitive Machines is a diversified space exploration,
infrastructure, and services company focused on fundamentally
disrupting lunar access economics. In 2024, Intuitive Machines
successfully soft-landed the Company’s Nova-C class lunar lander,
Odysseus, on the Moon, returning the United States to the lunar
surface for the first time since 1972. The Company’s products and
services are offered through its four in-space business units:
Lunar Access Services, Orbital Services, Lunar Data Services, and
Space Products and Infrastructure. For more information, please
visit intuitivemachines.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release includes “forward-looking statements” within
the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of
1995, as amended. These statements that do not relate to matters of
historical fact should be considered forward-looking. These
forward-looking statements generally are identified by the words
such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “continue,” “could,” “estimate,”
“expect,” “intend,” “may,” “might,” “plan,” “possible,”
“potential,” “predict,” “project,” “should,” “strive,” “would,”
“strategy,” “outlook,” the negative of these words or other similar
expressions, but the absence of these words does not mean that a
statement is not forward-looking. These forward-looking statements
include but are not limited to statements regarding: our
expectations and plans relating to the Lunar Terrain Vehicle. These
forward-looking statements reflect the Company’s predictions,
projections, or expectations based upon currently available
information and data. Our actual results, performance or
achievements may differ materially from those expressed or implied
by the forward-looking statements, and you are cautioned not to
place undue reliance on these forward looking statements. The
following important factors and uncertainties, among others, could
cause actual outcomes or results to differ materially from those
indicated by the forward-looking statements in this presentation:
our reliance upon the efforts of our Board and key personnel to be
successful; our limited operating history; our competition from
existing or new companies; unsatisfactory safety performance of our
spaceflight systems or security incidents at our facilities; any
delayed launches, launch failures, significant increases in the
costs related to launches of satellites and lunar landers, and
insufficient capacity available from satellite and lunar lander
launch providers; risks associated with commercial spaceflight,
including any accident on launch or during the journey into space;
risks associated with the handling, production and disposition of
potentially explosive and ignitable energetic materials and other
dangerous chemicals in our operations; our reliance on a limited
number of suppliers for certain materials and supplied components;
failure of our products to operate in the expected manner or
defects in our products; counterparty risks on contracts entered
into with our customers; failure to comply with various laws and
regulations relating to various aspects of our business and any
changes in the funding levels of various governmental entities with
which we do business; our failure to protect the confidentiality of
our trade secrets and know how; our failure to comply with the
terms of third-party open source software our systems utilize; our
ability to maintain an effective system of internal control over
financial reporting, and to address and remediate material
weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting; the
U.S. government’s budget deficit and the national debt, as well as
any inability of the U.S. government to complete its budget process
for any government fiscal year, and our dependence on U.S.
government contracts and funding by the government for the
government contracts; our failure to comply with U.S. export and
import control laws and regulations and U.S. economic sanctions and
trade control laws and regulations; uncertain global macro-economic
and political conditions and rising inflation; our history of
losses and failure to achieve profitability and our need for
substantial additional capital to fund our operations; the fact
that our financial results may fluctuate significantly from quarter
to quarter; the risk that our business and operations could be
significantly affected if it becomes subject to any securities
litigation or stockholder activism; our public securities’
potential liquidity and trading; and other public filings and press
releases other factors detailed under the section titled Part I,
Item 1A. Risk Factors of our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with
the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), the section
titled Part I, Item 2, Management’s Discussion and Analysis of
Financial Condition and Results of Operations, which are accessible
on the SEC's website at www.sec.gov and the Investors section of
our website at http://investors.intuitivemachines.com/.
These forward-looking statements are based on information
available as of the date of this press release and current
expectations, forecasts, and assumptions, and involve a number of
judgments, risks, and uncertainties. Accordingly, forward-looking
statements should not be relied upon as representing our views as
of any subsequent date, and we do not undertake any obligation to
update forward-looking statements to reflect events or
circumstances after the date they were made, whether as a result of
new information, future events, or otherwise, except as may be
required under applicable securities laws.
Contacts
For investor inquiries:
investors@intuitivemachines.com
For media inquiries:
press@intuitivemachines.com
A photo accompanying this announcement is available at
https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/0201358e-0e20-48b9-ada5-05cfba8e9b73
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