Asteroid Mining Company Will be Supported by Engineering Giant Bechtel

Asteroid mining company Planetary Resources, Inc. announced this week that engineering giant Bechtel has joined their core group of investors and will be a collaborative partner in helping them to achieve its long-term mission, which is to mine near-Earth asteroids for raw materials, ranging from elements used in rocket fuel to precious metals, through the development of innovative and cost-effective robotic exploration technologies. Planetary Resources says that they already have multiple contracts to develop miniaturized and responsive technologies with far-reaching applications to space assessment, accessibility and resource recovery.

"As we pursue our vision to expand the resource base beyond Earth; we're extremely excited to announce this partnership with Bechtel. They are a world leader in the engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) industry," said Dr. Peter H. Diamandis, Co-Founder and Co-Chairman, Planetary Resources, Inc. "Bechtel has a history of consistently tackling the most challenging projects, beginning with the construction of the Hoover Dam more than 75 years ago."

"Planetary Resources' mission is ambitious, but they've assembled a world-class team to succeed," said Riley Bechtel, Bechtel Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. "Our companies share a common vision to continually innovate and push boundaries, all aimed at contributing to a better quality of life. We look forward to joining the Planetary Resources' team."

Planetary Resources, Inc. was founded in 2009 with the vision to establish a new paradigm for resource utilization that will bring the solar system within humanity's economic sphere of influence. The company will conduct low-cost robotic space exploration beginning with the Arkyd-100 Series of space telescope missions that will identify the most commercially viable near-Earth asteroids. These initial missions will assist the company in enabling the retrieval of raw materials from these select asteroids, ranging from water to precious metals.

Planetary Resources is financed by industry-launching visionaries, three of whom include Google's CEO Larry Page & Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt and Ross Perot, Jr., Chairman of Hillwood and The Perot Group, who are committed to expanding the world's resource base so that humanity can continue to grow and prosper.