🔗 Share this article

A trio of leading European aerospace firms—the Airbus Group, Leonardo, and Thales Group—have now sealed a strategic deal to merge their space operations. The partnership seeks to form a single European tech company poised of competing with Elon Musk's SpaceX.

Financial Aspects and Stake Structure

The resulting company is projected to achieve yearly revenue of approximately 6.5 billion euros (5.6 billion pounds). As per the terms, the French aerospace giant Airbus will hold a 35% stake in the new business. At the same time, both Leonardo and Thales will respectively retain thirty-two point five percent ownership.

Scope and Objectives of the New Company

This unnamed alliance represents one of the largest consolidations of its type across the European continent. It will bring together diverse expertise in satellite manufacturing, spacecraft systems, components, and support services from top aerospace and defence producers.

The CEO of Airbus, Roberto Cingolani, and Thales's CEO jointly declared, “This joint company marks a pivotal step for Europe's space sector.” They continued, “By pooling our expertise, assets, expertise, and R&D strengths, we aim to generate growth, speed up progress, and provide enhanced value to our customers and stakeholders.”

Operational Details and Timeline

This combined company will be headquartered in Toulouse and employ about 25,000 people. The entity is planned to be operational in 2027, following regulatory clearances. As per the partners, it is projected to generate “hundreds of” millions of euros in cost savings on operating income per year, beginning after a five-year period.

Background and Reasons

Sources suggest that discussions among Airbus, Leonardo, and Thales started last year. The initiative aims to mirror the model of the European missile manufacturer MBDA, which is owned by Airbus, Leonardo, and BAE Systems.

Despite significant workforce reductions in their space-related units in the past few years, the companies stated that there would be zero immediate site closures or layoffs. However, they noted that unions would be consulted throughout the project.

Recent Struggles in Space-Related Operations

The companies have faced setbacks in their space operations recently. The previous year, Airbus incurred €1.3bn in charges from underperforming space projects and announced 2,000 job cuts in its defense and space division. Similarly, Thales Alenia Space, which is a collaboration between Thales and Leonardo, eliminated more than one thousand jobs last year.

Worldwide Competitive Environment

At the same time, Elon Musk's SpaceX company, established in 2002, has expanded to emerge as one of the biggest startups worldwide, with a valuation of {$$400bn. It dominates both the rocket launch and satellite-based internet sectors. Its primary competitors include additional US firms such as United Launch Alliance, a partnership between Boeing and Lockheed Martin, and Blue Origin, created by tech tycoon Jeff Bezos.

Just this month, the company launched its eleventh Starship from Texas, landing in the Indian Ocean. In August, US President Donald Trump approved an executive order to simplify rocket launches, relaxing regulations for commercial space companies.