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Iridium arranges funds for next-gen satellites
02 June 2010
Satellite company Iridium picks Thales Alenia to build 81 new satellites and arranges funds
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Iridium
satellites
Thales Alenia
Coface
Goldman Sachs
Société Générale
Hawkpoint
Iridium has announced its plan for funding, building and deploying its next-generation satellite constellation, Iridium Next.
The fleet, which will be launched from the first quarter of 2015, will replace the satellites first launched in the late 1990s, which are coming to the end of their operational lives.
The US-based company has expanded the project to 72 satellites in orbit, either operational or held as spares, plus another nine to be kept spare on the ground. The current design has just 66 operational satellites.
It has a fixed price contract with Thales Alenia Space, a joint 67%-33% venture of Thales and Finmeccanica, for the design and construction of the satellites.
Matt Desch, CEO of Iridium, said: “We have a great partner in Thales Alenia Space, a world leader in satellite systems, who has developed a sophisticated satellite constellation that will allow us to seamlessly transition to an even more powerful network in the future.”
Coface, the French export credit agency, has issued a promise of guarantee which commits to cover 95% of the $1.8 billion credit facility for the project. The financing to be covered by the Coface guarantee is being syndicated through French and other major international banks and financial institutions.
“The Coface guarantee enables Iridium to secure attractive and flexible low cost financing for the project,” said Desch. “Based on the amount of this guarantee, we expect Iridium Next to be fully funded when the financing is finalised this summer. This is a critical step in maintaining our customers’ and partners’ confidence that Iridium will keep delivering innovative products and services globally through the coming decades.”
Goldman Sachs, Société Générale and Hawkpoint Partners are advising Iridium in connection with the financing. Iridium says the whole project will cost around $2.9 billion. GTB