Starsem is a European-Russian company that was created in 1996 to commercialise the Soyuz launch services on the international market. It is Starsem is headquartered in Évry, France (near Paris).
Starsem is dedicated to providing commercial launch services with the reliable and proven Soyuz family of launch vehicles. The European-Russian organization brings together all key players involved in the production and operation of Soyuz and is responsible for international sales of the world's most versatile launch vehicle.
Starsem offers the Soyuz for a broad range of mission needs, including satellite telecommunications systems, scientific spacecraft, and Earth observation / meteorological platforms.
Starsem provides a turnkey service, from manufacture of the launch vehicle to mission preparations at the Baikonur Cosmodrome and successful in-orbit delivery of payloads.
As of Nov. 2012, Starsem has performed the following launches : Mars Express, Venus Express, Golbalstar communication satellites, METOP the European satellite for meteorology, etc. On 21 Oct. 2011, the first launch of the Soyuz rocket was made from the Kourou Space Centre, in Gyuanna.