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Airbus, Thales and Leonardo Edge Closer to Space Joint Venture as Announcement Slips

Advisers are finalizing terms following months of talks to combine loss‑making satellite units into a single European contender.

Overview

  • People familiar with the talks said a planned Wednesday announcement has been pushed back by up to 48 hours, with no major new obstacles reported.
  • A provisional split would give Airbus 35% and Thales and Leonardo 32.5% each, with balancing payments expected, including compensation to Airbus, according to the Financial Times.
  • The plan would pool satellite manufacturing assets into a France‑headquartered holding company known as Project Bromo, previously reported at roughly €10 billion in scale.
  • Corporate governance decisions, including who will appoint the chair, CEO and CFO, are expected to follow later after a period of standalone operations, and prior EU antitrust concerns remain a factor.
  • The consolidation aims to regain competitiveness against SpaceX’s Starlink and the market shift to cheaper low‑Earth‑orbit satellites, with Airbus’s recent losses heightening urgency, sources said.