Rocket Lab narrowed its loss and reported rising revenue in the second quarter as it established an outpost in Germany and signed a deal to launch satellites for Kepler Communications.

The launch and space systems company said it had established Rocket Lab Germany GmbH, which it said would provide sovereign space capabilities in Europe and support the future scaling of manufacturing capacity in Germany.

The move follows its acquisition of Mynaric, a Munich-based provider of laser optical communications terminals. Now, Rocket Lab "is also pursuing opportunities that could lead to the establishment of satellite, payload, and components manufacturing in Germany," the company said.

The company on Monday reported a loss of $49.3 million, or 8 cents a share, compared with a loss of $66.4 million, or 13 cents a share, a year earlier.

Revenue grew to $234.1 million, up from $144.5 million a year prior. Product revenues nearly doubled to $181.3 million from $92.7 million, while service revenues ticked up to $52.7 million from $51.8 million.

Analysts polled by FactSet were expecting a loss of 6 cents a share on revenue of $231.6 million. Shares of Rocket Lab fell 1.6% to $78.80 after Monday's bell.

The company ended its quarter with a backlog of $2.36 billion, up 137% year-over-year. So far in the third quarter, the company has entered into new contracts worth more than $1 billion, Chief Executive Officer Peter Beck said.

For the current quarter, the company guided for revenue between $250 million and $265 million. Analysts currently expect $238.5 million in revenue.

Rocket Lab on Monday said it was selected by Kepler, a space infrastructure company, to launch multiple satellites into low Earth orbit from its launch complex in Virginia, using the Neutron rocket.

Those satellites will support both commercial and government missions, Rocket Lab said, adding that the deal is Kepler's first mission booked on a commercial launch vehicle.

The company also on Monday announced the Global Hypersonic & Orbital Spaceport Technology, or GHOST, a containerized launch system which it said would enable suborbital and orbital launches globally. GHOST, which is packaged within standard shipping containers, will begin launches at the Pacific Spaceport Complex in Kodiak, Alaska in 2027.

Late last month, the company received a $266 million contract for up to 18 suborbital launches for the U.S. Space Force. The first launch is set to take place by the end of the year.

Rocket Lab in June also agreed to acquire Iridium, a satellite operator, for $54 a share in cash and stock, positioning the company to possibly compete with SpaceX's satellite business.

That acquisition, plus the recent purchases of Mynaric and Motiv, "position Rocket Lab to accelerate our future into space applications by becoming a self-launching, tier-1 space power that will deliver critical communications capability to millions of users worldwide," Beck said.