BEIJING (Reuters) - A small but powerful Chinese rocket capable of sending payloads at competitive costs delivered nine satellites into orbit on Saturday, Chinese state media reported, in what is gearing up to be another busy year for Chinese commercial launches. It was the third launch of the rocket, developed by China Rocket Co, a commercial offshoot of a state-owned launch vehicle manufacturer, since December 2022. The cost is similar to the launches of other Chinese small-lift rockets including the Long March 11, but their payload sizes are significantly smaller. Other commercial companies in the Chinese vehicle launch sector includes Galactic Energy, whose Ceres-1 rocket made its debut flight in November 2020. Ceres-1 is capable of delivering a 300 kg payload to a 500 km sun-synchronous orbit.

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Persons: Xi Jinping, Ryan Woo, Jacqueline Wong Organizations: China, Co, Geely Holding, CAS Space, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Galactic Energy Locations: BEIJING, Yangjiang, Guangdong, Guangzhou, Lijian, Ceres, Beijing, Shandong