Virgin Orbit pauses work for a week and seeks financing

Space company Virgin Orbit is suspending operations for a week while it looks for financing, CNBC reports. In the meantime, almost all employees are being placed on unpaid leave. The company will provide an update in the coming weeks.

Virgin Orbit is said to have informed its staff of the situation on Wednesday evening, sources tell CNBC. A small team will continue to work next week, while the rest will be put on unpaid leave. Employees do have the option to take paid vacation days. The company wants to provide an update on the mandatory leave and the financing situation next Wednesday or Thursday, insiders report. A spokesperson for the company confirmed to CNBC that it is taking an “operational pause” and that the company will “provide an update on further activities in the coming weeks.”

The American space company has been struggling with financial problems for some time. The company posted a quarterly loss of $42.9 million in early November. At the time, the company still had $71.2 million in cash. In the current quarter, the company has raised 55 million in financing in the form of debt from the investment arm of parent company Virgin Group.

In January, Virgin Orbit held its sixth space mission and its first from the United Kingdom, using a converted Boeing to launch a rocket carrying satellites. That launch attempt failed due to a premature stop of the rocket stage ignition, causing the rocket to crash into the ocean. According to the company This was due to a loose fuel filter. Virgin Orbit said in January that research into it was “nearly complete” and that “the next production rocket with appropriate modifications” was in the final stages of integration and testing.