Major EU Aerospace Firms Unite to Establish Competitor to Musk's SpaceX
A trio of prominent EU-based space technology companies—the Airbus Group, Leonardo, and Thales—have sealed a major agreement to merge their space-related businesses. This collaboration seeks to establish a single European tech enterprise capable of competing with Elon Musk's SpaceX.
Financial Aspects and Stake Breakdown
The newly formed company is expected to achieve yearly revenue of approximately 6.5 billion euros (£5.6bn). As per the terms, Airbus will control a 35% stake in the new business. Meanwhile, both Leonardo and Thales will each own 32.5% shares.
Scope and Objectives of the New Enterprise
This unnamed alliance represents one of the largest consolidations of its kind across Europe. It will bring together diverse expertise in satellite manufacturing, spacecraft systems, parts, and services from leading aerospace and defence producers.
Guillaume Faury, Leonardo's chief executive, and Thales's CEO jointly stated, “This new venture marks a crucial step for the European space industry.” The executives added, “Through combining our talent, assets, expertise, and research and development strengths, we intend to generate expansion, speed up progress, and deliver greater benefits to our customers and stakeholders.”
Business Details and Timeline
This new company will be headquartered in Toulouse, France and have a workforce of approximately 25,000 people. It is planned to be fully functional in the year 2027, pending necessary clearances. As per the partners, it is projected to yield “hundreds of” millions of euros in cost savings on annual profit each year, beginning after a five-year timeframe.
Background and Motivation
Sources suggest that discussions between Airbus, Leonardo, and Thales started last year. The move seeks to mirror the structure of the European missile manufacturer MBDA, which is owned by Airbus, Leonardo, and BAE Systems.
Despite significant job cuts in their space-related units in recent years, the firms assured that there would be no immediate site closures or job losses. However, they confirmed that unions would be engaged during the project.
Past Challenges in Space-Related Operations
The companies have faced setbacks in their space operations in recent times. Last year, Airbus incurred €1.3bn in charges from underperforming space contracts and revealed 2,000 redundancies in its defense and space sector. In a similar vein, the Thales Alenia Space joint venture, a partnership between Thales and Leonardo, eliminated more than one thousand jobs the previous year.
Global Competitive Landscape
Meanwhile, Elon Musk's SpaceX, founded in 2002, has expanded to become one of the biggest startups worldwide, with a market value of {$400 billion dollars. It dominates both the space launch and satellite-based internet sectors. Its main rivals are additional US companies such as United Launch Alliance, a joint venture between Boeing and Lockheed Martin, and Blue Origin, created by technology tycoon Jeff Bezos.
Earlier this month, the company launched its 11th Starship rocket from Texas, USA, touching down in the Indian Ocean. In August, American President Donald Trump signed an presidential directive to simplify rocket launches, easing regulations for private space operators.
