Luxembourg, 28 April 2021. – Eutelsat invests in OneWeb and acquires a 24% stake for $550 million, “becoming a leading shareholder of the company alongside the UK Government and Bharti Global”, Eutelsat announced.
The investment will be cash financed through Eutelsat’s liquidity position of €1.9 billion and through the $507 million that Eutelsat expects to receive from selling C-band rights in the U.S.
OneWeb will operate 648 satellites in low Earth orbit (LEO), offering “significant” regional coverage by the end of 2021 and global coverage in 2022.
“OneWeb will be the first complete non-geostationary constellation with truly global coverage, significantly ahead of competing projects”, Eutelsat said. “It will deliver 1.1 Tbps of capacity addressing the government, fixed data and mobility markets. Plans include a second-generation constellation that will provide significant enhancements in terms of capacity, flexibility and economics.”
