Space Business Review a Monthly Round-Up of Space Industry Developments for the Information of Our Clients and Friends
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Space Business Review A monthly round-up of space industry developments for the information of our clients and friends. June 2018 INTELSAT CONCURRENT OFFERINGS SPACEX LAUNCHES SES-12 SATELLITE On June 11, Intelsat S.A. (Intelsat) announced On June 4, Space Exploration Technologies that it priced an offering of 13,477,089 common Corp. (SpaceX) successfully launched the all- CONTACTS: shares at $14.84 per common share, subject to an electric SES-12 satellite for SES S.A. on a flight- option for the issuance of an additional 2,021,563 proven Falcon 9 launch vehicle. Manufactured Dara A. Panahy common shares, and an offering of $350m by Airbus Defence and Space and equipped 202-835-7521 [email protected] aggregate principal amount of 4.5% convertible with six wide beams and 72 high-throughput senior notes due 2025, subject to an option for user spot beams, SES-12 will join the SES-8 Bijan Ganji the purchase of an additional $52.5m aggregate satellite at the 95°E orbital position to provide 202-835-7543 principal amount of notes. Intelsat stated that it video, fixed data, mobility and government [email protected] plans to loan and/or contribute all or some of the communications services to customers net proceeds from both offerings to Intelsat throughout the Middle East and Asia-Pacific Envision Holdings LLC, a new wholly-owned region. SpaceX did not attempt to recover the To learn about Milbank’s subsidiary of Intelsat (Luxembourg) S.A., which first stage of the Falcon 9 following launch. In an Space Business Practice, or will become the direct parent company of unrelated development, on June 21, SpaceX view previous issues of the Intelsat Connect Finance S.A. and will announced that it was awarded a $130m firm- Space Business Review, guarantee the new notes, and to use such net fixed-price contract from the U.S. Department please visit www.milbank.com. proceeds to purchase Intelsat (Luxembourg) of Defense to perform the Air Force Space S.A.’s 7.75% senior notes due 2021. Command-52 (AFSPC-52) mission using a The information contained Falcon Heavy launch vehicle in 2020. The herein is provided for INMARSAT ATTRACTS SUITORS award, which follows a competitive bidding informational purposes only On June 8, Inmarsat plc (Inmarsat) announced process in which SpaceX prevailed over United and should not be construed that it received and rejected an unsolicited Launch Alliance, marks the first time that the as legal advice on any subject takeover offer from EchoStar Corporation on Falcon Heavy has scored a competitive victory of matter. Recipients of this the basis that it significantly undervalued the a military launch services contract. publication should not take or company. The offer amount was not disclosed. refrain from taking any action On June 26, a day after confirming rumors that it VIASAT LEASES HYLAS 4 CAPACITY based upon content included herein. If you do not wish to was contemplating its own offer for Inmarsat, On June 25, ViaSat Inc. announced that it receive this newsletter, please Eutelsat Communications S.A. announced that leased, for two years, one of the four steerable send an e-mail to it does not intend to make an acquisition offer. beams on HYLAS 4, Avanti Communications Group plc’s newest satellite, for $10m. ViaSat [email protected] JUNE LAUNCH SERVICES ORDERS with the word “unsubscribe” in Inc. plans to use the capacity to support June 4 – Surrey Satellite Technology Limited the subject line. international government applications across the (SSTL) contracted with small launch vehicle Americas, the Atlantic Ocean and the Middle © 2018 - Milbank, Tweed, developer Firefly Aerospace, Inc. (Firefly) for up East. Separately, on June 12, ViaSat Inc. Hadley & McCloy LLP. to six launch services from 2020 to 2022 on the announced that it acquired Horsebridge Alpha launch vehicle. The first mission currently Defence and Security Ltd., a UK-based military expected to be performed is the launch of the communications company. Financial details of Carbonite-4 satellite, which is scheduled for the transaction were not disclosed. early 2020. June 11 –Spaceflight Industries Inc. AIRBUS AND PLANET TEAM UP (Spaceflight) announced it procured three launch On June 25, Airbus Defence and Space and services from Rocket Lab USA, Inc. on the Planet Labs, Inc. announced that they entered Electron launch vehicle. The first mission will into a framework agreement in order to facilitate launch a microsatellite for Spaceflight subsidiary access to each other’s data and to explore BlackSky Global LLC and several other payloads opportunities for joint cooperation in new and in late 2018; the second mission will launch a existing markets, including toward the co- group of commercial and government satellites development of new geospatial solutions. in early 2019; and the third mission will launch FORECAST OF LAUNCH SECTOR GROWTH an Earth observation satellite for Canon According to a new report published by Global Electronics Inc. in early 2019. Market Insights, the global commercial satellite June 25 – Spaceflight announced that it signed launch services market is poised to grow more a Memorandum of Understanding with Virgin than 16% – to $7b – by 2024 as a result of the Orbit for a mission to Low Earth Orbit in 2019 increasing use of data-based communication on the LauncherOne launch vehicle. services and navigation and tracking systems. Milbank.com .