Canadian space technology company MDA Space has signed an agreement with Thales Alenia Space to begin work on digital antennas for the first 66 satellites of the European Union’s IRIS2 secure connectivity constellation. The agreement comes as Canada and the EU have announced plans to explore Canadian participation in the programme.
In a 30 October announcement, MDA Space revealed that it had received authorisation to proceed with the development of digital phased array antennas and a digital antenna controller for the satellites. The company valued the initial agreement at more than C$100 million (€64.18 million). While the agreement authorises work to begin, MDA Space noted that a definitive contract covering its full scope of work has yet to be finalised.
The agreement follows the award of initial contracts for the other major elements of the IRIS2 constellation’s first 66 satellites, referred to as Layer One. In September, Airbus Defence and Space was selected to manufacture the satellite platforms and integrate the spacecraft, while Thales Alenia Space secured a contract to develop their Ka-band communications payloads. Launches for this first layer of the IRIS2 constellation are expected to begin in 2029.
Contracts for the other 282 satellites that will make up the IRIS2 constellation were awarded in August and September. On 31 August, SES awarded Germany’s OHB a contract worth nearly €1 billion to develop and manufacture all 18 medium Earth orbit satellite platforms. This was followed by an announcement on 10 September that Belgium’s Aerospacelab had secured a €2.4 billion contract to manufacture and integrate the remaining 264 low Earth orbit (LEO) satellites.
The involvement of a Canadian company in the EU-backed constellation comes as Canada and the European Union look to strengthen cooperation on secure satellite communications. In a joint statement issued on 30 October , the same day as MDA Space’s announcement, Canada and the EU outlined plans to begin exploratory talks on a framework for Canadian involvement in the IRIS2 programme.
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