Swiss aerospace group RUAG is to acquire the space unit of Finnish defence company Patria.
Under the terms of the transaction, RUAG will purchase all the business operations and assets of Patria Space, including its 32 employees. Financial details were…
Swiss aerospace group RUAG is to acquire the space unit of Finnish defence company Patria.
Under the terms of the transaction, RUAG will purchase all the business operations and assets of Patria Space, including its 32 employees. Financial details were not disclosed.
Currently part of Patria’s Systems Business Unit, the subsidiary is to be spun out into a newly formed company called RUAG Space Finland. The transaction is expected to close by mid-2015 at the latest.
Patria has worked on space programmes for more than 25 years, specialising in spacecraft control electronics and electrical power subsystems. The company has worked on a number of European Space Agency projects including its Sentinel-2, Earthcare and Swarm satellites.
Patria’s electrical power subsystems are currently being used on ESA’s solar probe Solar Orbiter as well as the Rosetta mission.
Commenting on the acquisition, Urs Breitmeier, CEO of RUAG, said: “The acquisition of Patria’s Space unit gives us the opportunity to broaden our technology base and to enhance our product portfolio in the area of Space Electronics. This will help us further improve our position particularly in the commercial satellite market.”
Jukka Holkeri, chief strategy officer at Patria, added: “Both Patria Space and RUAG Space are world class suppliers of high quality and advanced space equipment and have a good strategic fit. And to offer a better growth basis for space business we see our Space unit has more possibilities to develop further as a part of RUAG Group, where space is defined as a strategic priority.”
A spokesperson for RUAG said that the company is looking to grow its space business internationally in order to counter sluggish government spending in Europe.
“Since the European institutional space markets are almost flat, growth possibilities in this market segment are limited by nature. Thus it is part of our strategy to expand outside Europe and into the commercial satellite market. We think that the acquisition of Patria supports this strategy, in particular with respect to the commercial market,” the spokesperson said.
European aerospace giant Airbus recently sold its 26.8% stake in Patria to the country’s government. The state’s ownership, though, is only temporary with Eero Heliövaara, director-general of the Ownership Steering Department of the Finnish Prime Minister’s Office, saying: “The current solution is only temporary in nature and the owner will initiate measures with Patria to seek a new minority partner early next year.”