Article
European Space Giants Unite: Airbus, Leonardo, and Thales Form New €6.5B Powerhouse
Summary
Airbus, Leonardo, and Thales have signed an MoU to merge their space businesses, forming a new European company with a projected €6.5 billion in annual turnover and 25,000 employees. The goal is to ensure Europe's strategic autonomy and boost global competitiveness in space technology and services.
Three of Europe's top space and defense industry powerhouses, Airbus, Leonardo, and Thales, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to merge their respective space businesses under one, strong new European entity. This historic merger will create a single, united, and strong player in the global space market.
The primary impetus for this strategic change is to significantly increase Europe's strategic independence in space. The new structure is designed to have the mass and capacity to compete on an equal footing with the world's best players. By combining their complementary technology, means, and R&D strengths, the companies will make the European space environment better to stimulate innovation in the most vital fields like telecommunications, worldwide navigation, Earth observation, science, and national security.
The merger will bring together the satellite and space systems manufacturing business of each company and the space services business, intentionally excluding the space launcher business. This tactical maneuver will enable the combined entity to offer a more diversified and competitive portfolio of end-to-end products and services.
Financially, the merged group is expected to be a major force. On end of 2024 pro-forma bases, the new group will consist of an estimated annual turnover of €6.5 billion and approximately 25,000 employees across Europe. The deal is arranged with a balanced joint control governance, with ownership shares split as 35% to Airbus, and 32.5% to each Leonardo and Thales.
Leadership from all three companies stated that this partnership is a milestone moment that comes with the ambitions of the governments in Europe to shield the industrial and technological assets of the continent in the strategic space domain. The joint venture is expected to generate mid-triple-digit million euros of operating income per annum synergies in five years following the completion. The new company will be operational by 2027, pending customary regulatory approvals and other conditions. The shared front is to assist in cementing Europe's status as a leading global space player.