As the Indian Space Research Organisation’s (ISRO) Moon mission Chandrayaan-3 made a soft landing on the lunar surface, the aerospace and defense companies are in the limelight.
Companies in the aerospace and defense sector, Larsen & Toubro, Mishra Dhatu Nigam, Hindustan Aeronautics, Bharat Forge, Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (BHEL), Linde India, Centum Electronics, Avantel, MTAR Technologies and Paras Defence and Space Technologies saw buying interest on Wednesday, even as Chandrayaan-3 was getting ready to touch down on the Moon.
Centum Electronics, which delivered more than 200 critical modules to the Chandrayaan-3 mission, zoomed 14.91 per cent. Paras Defence and Space Technologies Ltd jumped 5.47 per cent, MTAR Technologies rallied 4.84 per cent, Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd climbed 3.57 per cent, and Mishra Dhatu Nigam jumped 3.10 per cent.
Shares of Bharat Forge climbed 2.82 per cent, Astra Microwave Products gained 1.72 per cent, Larsen & Toubro 1.42 per cent, and Walchandnagar Industries Ltd 1.34 per cent.
“A successful landing of Chandrayaan-3 is likely to generate positive sentiment for these companies, potentially boosting their stock prices,” Economic Times quoted Santosh Meena, Head of Research, Swastika Investmart as saying.
The successful landing is also expected to attract more investment in the country's space-tech sector. Here is a look at some of the companies that are in focus and the role they played in Chandrayaan-3 mission.
Larsen & Toubro
Larsen & Toubro had stated that the critical booster segments of the mission, namely head end segment, middle segment and nozzle bucket flange, with a diameter of 3.2 meter, were manufactured and proof pressure tested at L&T’s Facility in Powai. “We are privileged to partner with ISRO in nationally important space programmes for which L&T has contributed its remarkable engineering prowess, manufacturing expertise and skilled workforce. The space sector is opening up for the Indian Industry and we will leverage this long association with ISRO to play a bigger role in space programmes of the future,” the company had said in July.
Mishra Dhatu Nigam
The company said it "developed and supplied various critical and strategic materials for LVM3 M4, a three-stage heavy lift launch vehicle, for the launch of the Chandrayaan-3 lunar mission."
Hindustan Aeronautics
The public sector aerospace and defense company is understood to have provided key support to the mission. The company, being a leading player in the aerospace industry, is likely to have offered expertise, technology, and components necessary for the mission.
Centum Electronics
The company, which saw heavy buying interest on Wednesday, delivered more than 200 mission-critical modules to the Chandrayaan-3. Centum Electronics provides flexible manufacturing solutions for high technology and high complexity applications.
Paras Defence and Space Technologies
The company provided navigation system for the Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft.
MTAR Technologies
The company has been associated with ISRO for over three decades and has been supplying "a wide variety of mission critical assemblies" for its missions. MTAR Technologies manufactures liquid propulsion engines, cryogenic engines (turbo pumps, booster pumps, gas generators and injector heads for such engines) and electro-pneumatic modules to serve space launch vehicles.
Walchandnagar Industries Ltd
The Pune-based company, which has been cooperating with ISRO from 1973, has actively participated in the manufacture of booster motor casings and nozzles for the ISRO space programmes, from SLV-3, ASLV to PSLV & GSLV Mk II and Mk I.