Bharti Global will up its stake in OneWeb, adding another $500 million to bring the satellite company to a fully funded state with $2.4 billion infused since the emergence from bankruptcy. The move will increase Bharti’s stake to just under 40%, with co-owners Eutelsat, Softbank, and the UK government each holding just under 20%.
We are intently focused on execution and just ten more launches will enable us to deliver global coverage. Investors have backed the extraordinary efforts of the OneWeb team to deliver more of the global connectivity the World needs.
– Neil Masterson, OneWeb CEO
The news comes just ahead of a planned satellite launch on Thursday. If successful this eighth launch completes 40% of the initial constellation. It will allow the company to deliver service across the arctic down to 50 degrees north latitude. Another ten launches, each of 36 satellites, will be required to complete the low earth orbit constellation and deliver global coverage.
OneWeb CEO Neil Masterson suggests the completion of funding puts the company “in a powerful position.” He highlights the $3.4 billion in pre-bankruptcy funding as well, and suggests that OneWeb’s deployment costs will be a third of its competitors (Starlink’s Elon Musk has repeatedly noted a planned $5-10 billion investment before anything resembling positive cash flow is realized). That lower cost basis should help the company thrive as competition in the segment increases.
The OneWeb constellation aims to deliver 1.1 Tbps of capacity when fully online, addressing the government, fixed data, and mobility markets. The network will come online in phases.
The company expects to deliver full coverage north of 50 degrees latitude later this year, before growing to a global footprint at the end of 2022.
Completing the global coverage footprint is a key milestone for the planned in-flight connectivity offering to materialize. The company believes its EoY ’22 timing for that meshes nicely with other project timings, such as antenna and terminal developments.
More on OneWeb’s recent evolution:
- Eutelsat makes major LEO commitment with OneWeb investment
- The low-down on LEO IFC options
- OneWeb buys TrustComm, access to the US government market
- De-risking IFC with OneWeb’s new JetTalk terminal
- OneWeb emerges from bankruptcy, ready to launch
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