(Corrects to read "is authorised to list 200 million shares"
(not "will list 200 million shares"), paragraph 2)
TOKYO, March 8 (Reuters) - Japan's ispace Inc., aiming
to be the first commercial company to land a probe on the moon,
announced on Wednesday an initial public offering of its shares.
The start-up is authorised to list 200 million shares on the
Tokyo Stock Exchange's growth section on April 12, according to
a release from the exchange, which lists the company's business
as lunar development and transportation services.
In December the company launched its HAKUTO-R Mission 1
lunar lander aboard a SpaceX rocket which took off Cape
Canaveral, Florida, carrying two robotic rovers.
Tokyo-based ispace gave a mission update last month, saying
the probe had reached its furthest distance from Earth and was
due to touch down on the moon's surface in late April. The company has a contract with NASA to ferry payloads to
the moon from 2025 and is aiming to build a permanently staffed
lunar colony by 2040.
(Reporting by Rocky Swift; editing by Jason Neely)
