TAMPA, Fla. — An undisclosed buyer is paying MDA 180 million Canadian {dollars} ($131 million) to begin engineering a non-geostationary constellation of 36 satellites.
The deal may very well be price at the least 4 instances extra if the Canadian house {hardware} specialist advances to grow to be prime contractor for the constellation subsequent 12 months, MDA stated in a quick Nov. 17 information launch.
MDA spokesperson Amy MacLeod declined to offer extra particulars on the Authorization to Proceed (ATP) contract, which kicks off early work for a satellite tv for pc mission resembling procuring long-lead gadgets.
It’s the second buyer order MDA has introduced for a brand new software-defined satellite tv for pc design that may be reconfigured in orbit to reply to adjustments in demand.
Telesat selected MDA’s newest spacecraft product this summer time for 198, 750-kilogram satellites the Canadian operator goals to begin deploying in mid-2026 for its proposed low Earth orbit (LEO) Lightspeed broadband constellation.
Based mostly on a unique spacecraft design, MDA can also be offering Globalstar of the USA 17 LEO satellites in 2025 to refresh a constellation Apple makes use of for the iPhone’s space-enabled emergency providers.
MacLeod stated MDA is busy increasing manufacturing amenities in Montreal to accommodate rising demand from constellation clients, in the end aiming to have the capability to provide two satellites a day.
Manufacturing volumes are “ramping in step with buyer orders,” she stated with out elaborating.
Though MDA has efficiently produced satellite tv for pc elements at scale, together with 2,000 antennas delivered for OneWeb’s LEO constellation, Quilty Analytics analyst Caleb Henry stated constructing three constellations without delay would create schedule threat for the producer.
“MDA’s latest declare to fame is a mix of digital payloads and superior beam-forming antennas that take pleasure in decreasing Measurement, Weight and Energy (SWaP) on spacecraft,” Henry added through e-mail.
“In a world the place spacecraft are inclined to maintain getting greater, this know-how presents a uncommon alternative to go smaller with out sacrificing on functionality.”
Telesat grew to become the anchor buyer for MDA’s newest satellite tv for pc platform after ditching plans for Lightspeed with Europe’s Thales Alenia Area, which the Canadian operator stated would have price $2 billion extra.
Armand Musey, a satellite tv for pc business analyst and founding father of Summit Ridge Group, stated MDA may very well be taking one other mission from a rival producer with larger prices.
The contract additionally comes weeks after MDA closed its acquisition of SatixFy Area Techniques UK Ltd, Israeli satcoms gear maker SatixFy’s U.Ok.-based satellite tv for pc payload subsidiary.
MDA stated Oct. 31 the acquisition would speed up the corporate’s enlargement into the UK, including strategic in-country functionality to provide satellite tv for pc payloads whereas serving to to advance its new digital satellite tv for pc product providing.
