TAMPA, Fla. — Eutelsat expects to take a 7% revenue hit as delays securing landing rights in India, Thailand, Turkey, and elsewhere prevent the OneWeb broadband constellation it finished launching nearly a year ago from providing global coverage before the second half of 2024.
The company had planned to start providing the service worldwide in early 2024 after deploying 633 satellites in low Earth orbit (LEO), including in-orbit spares.
However, Eutelsat CEO Eva Berneke said in a Jan. 29 management call with analysts that the company is behind on rolling out gateways for the constellation, and expects to have only completed 90% of the ground network by the end of June.
Only 30 gateways have been installed so far, Eutelsat spokesperson Joanna Darlington told SpaceNews via email, and the aim is to reach 38 by the second half of 2024, and then deploy the rest over the following six months.
Around 40 gateways are needed for global service, Berneke said on the management call, and gaps include countries such as India and Saudi Arabia where Eutelsat has significant “take-or-pay” contracts for LEO broadband capacity. The take-or-pay contracts require the buyer to accept delivery of LEO capacity once operational or pay a penalty.
LEO delays mean Eutelsat now expects to record revenues for its fiscal year to the end of June between 1.25 billion and 1.3 billion euros ($1.35-1.4 billion) — versus 1.32 billion to 1.42 billion euros previously — mainly driven by the entry into service of two geostationary satellites: Eutelsat 10B and Konnect VHTS.
Adjusted EBITDA, or earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, is now due to come in at between 650 million and 680 million euros for the current fiscal year, 14% lower than previously expected.
Last year, Eutelsat had expected OneWeb to contribute between 125 million and 225 million euros in revenues over the 12 months to June 30, 2024. Most of Eutelsat’s current…
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