384 000 km
from Earth
129.78°E
-89.67°S
1 June 2026 – At Choose France, the summit dedicated to France’s economic attractiveness, Venturi Space announced a €250 million investment in France to establish its new 16,000 sq m technology centre in Toulouse. The site will be dedicated to the design and manufacture of critical technologies for lunar and Martian mobility, as well as to the assembly of the rovers developed by the company.
The industrial project led by its Chairman, Gildo Pastor, comes at a time of major acceleration. NASA has selected the CLV-1 rover developed by the American company Venturi Astrolab, Venturi Space’s strategic partner, to transport its astronauts across the surface of the Moon from 2028. This vehicle will draw, in particular, on critical technologies developed by Venturi Space.
To meet the growing needs of American and European lunar programmes, at a time when surface mobility is becoming one of the key challenges of sustainable lunar exploration, Venturi Space will employ nearly 200 highly qualified people in Toulouse. Already established in Toulouse for two and a half years, the company is developing, in collaboration with the Group’s Swiss and Monegasque entities, critical technologies for lunar and Martian exploration, including high-performance batteries, hyper-deformable wheels and energy management systems, among others.
Venturi Space’s development in Toulouse is part of both an American and a European momentum. In the United States, NASA’s selection of Venturi Astrolab confirms the relevance of the technologies developed by Venturi Space for the next crewed Artemis missions. In Europe, Venturi Space is contributing to the preparatory work for future lunar rovers. This momentum is reflected by MONA LUNA, its 100% European lunar rover, unveiled in June 2025.
| QUOTES |
“I have always believed that mobility would be one of the keys to space exploration. Today, the momentum is there. With this €250 million investment and the creation of nearly 200 jobs, Venturi Space is taking a decisive step forward. We have the technologies, the experience, the partners and, soon, the industrial tool to go further. I want this project to succeed, to bring an entire sector with it, and to inspire Toulouse.”
— Gildo Pastor, Chairman of Venturi Space
“In Toulouse, Venturi Space will bring together the key expertise required to industrialise lunar and Martian mobility. This site will be Venturi Space’s European flagship. Our teams will work there on critical technologies, on the integration of complex systems and on the assembly of rovers designed to operate in the most extreme environments. It will play a central role in our ability to meet the requirements of American and European lunar programmes.”
— Dr Antonio Delfino, Director of Space Affairs at Venturi Space
NASA announced today that it has selected the US-based company Venturi Astrolab, Inc. (Astrolab) as one of two providers of a crewed lunar rover for the Artemis campaign, advancing the agency’s plans to establish sustained surface mobility at the lunar South Pole.
Under a contract signed with the European Space Agency (ESA), Venturi Space has been conducting, since 1 January 2026, a risk-reduction study focusing on three key technologies for future lunar rovers.
Five months after being unveiled at the Paris Air Show, the European lunar rover MONA LUNA has successfully completed a test campaign at the European Space Agency’s (ESA) LUNA centre in Cologne, Germany. A key outcome: the vehicle shows remarkable adaptability to loose soil, slopes, and obstacles.
Venturi Space unveils MONA LUNA, its 100% European-built lunar rover. Designed to support the ambitions of the European Space Agency and the French CNES, the vehicle will be built at Venturi Space France's facility in Toulouse. The ultimate aim is to provide Europe with a lunar-capable rover by 2030.
DDM VALENTINE CHAPUIS / L INGENIEUR FRANCAIS ET SPATIONAUTE JEAN FRANCOIS CLERVOY ETAIT A LA CITE DE L ESPACE A TOULOUSE DANS LE CADRE DE LA PRESENTATION DU NOUVEAU FILM DE ALICE WINOCOUR QUI RELATE L HISTOIRE D UNE FEMME SPATIONAUTE / CINEMA PORTRAIT
Gildo Pastor, President of the Monegasque company Venturi Space, welcomed HSH Prince Albert II of Monaco, the first person to have driven a rover on the Moon and Commander of the Apollo 15 mission General David Scott, and astronaut Jean-François Clervoy.
