# ESA signs €81.2M contract with OHB Italia to build Ramses for a spring 2028 launch

Canonical page: https://technooptimist.io/stories/esa-signs-81-2m-contract-with-ohb-italia-to-build-ramses-for-a-spring-4ef2edda
Date: 10 Feb 2026
About: [European Space Agency](https://technooptimist.io/companies/esa.md) · [Ramses](https://technooptimist.io/spaceflight/ramses.md)
Original source: https://www.esa.int/Space_Safety/Planetary_Defence/ESA_awards_contracts_for_Ramses_mission_to_Apophis

ESA signed the contract that starts construction, assembly and testing of Ramses, four days after its critical design review concluded. The €81.2 million deal brings OHB Italia's total to about €150 million. Tyvak International won €8.2 million for one of the two CubeSats, and JAXA supplies the solar arrays and a thermal infrared imager.

## Key facts

- Critical design review concluded on 6 February 2026.
- Launch planned for spring 2028; JAXA offered a shared launch with Destiny+.
- One CubeSat, Farinella, is named after Italian planetary scientist Paolo Farinella.

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