Consolidation is running through the satellite industry. A year ago it was Eutelsat absorbing OneWeb, Viasat buying Inmarsat and more recently SES making a $3.1 billion (€2.8bn) commitment to acquire rival Intelsat. The SES/Intelsat move is expected to wrap this summer.

Consolidation is also affecting smaller satellite businesses. April 1st saw Canada-based MDA announce its plans to buy one of its chip suppliers SatixFy – and a major player in its field – in a deal worth an overall $269 million (including debt); SatixFy has spent $270 million in R&D since 2012; New Zealand-based Rocket Lab has announced its move on laser communication terminal provider Mynaric for $75 million ($300 million already invested in the business); and last year when Lockheed Martin bought Terran Orbital for $450 million.

As to the latest move, MDA Space is proposing to acquire satellite digital beamforming/chip manufacturer SatixFy for $2.10/share, which equates to about $193 million, in all-cash transaction that is 75 per cent above Satixfy’s share price at close of business on March 31st. Satixfy has 45-day ‘go shop’ period to search for a more attractive deal. The proposed price is 13-times SatixFy’s 2024 revenues.

Isreal-based SatixFy is an attractive business and serves clients in all of the three key orbits (GEO, MEO, LEO) and in consumer, government, mobility and military. MDA is already a client.

SatixFy’s products include modems that feature Software Defined Radio and Fully Electronically Steered Multi Beam Antennas (ESMA) that support the advanced communications standard DVB-S2X

“With this acquisition MDA Space is taking a logical next step to further reinforce our technical differentiation as the global market transitions from analogue to digital satellite technology,” said Mike Greenley, Chief Executive Officer of MDA Space. “Similar to MDA Space, SatixFy is an innovation company at its core, and bringing these two highly skilled teams together adds complementary expertise and technology that will allow us to further enhance our value proposition for current and future customers by providing vertically integrated and differentiated digital satellite solutions.”

“SatixFy has consistently aimed to revolutionise the market with digital chip-based solutions while establishing a world-leading space technology company. Joining MDA Space marks a significant milestone in that journey,” added Nir Barkan, Chief Executive Officer of SatixFy. “This transaction is a testament to the innovation and dedication of our employees over the past decade. It will provide the scale, resources, and stability needed to continue delivering groundbreaking solutions for our customers.”

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Tags: eutelsat, Intelsat, satellite, SatixFy, SES