UK government wins stake in satellite firm Oneweb
The UK government has won its joint bid with India’s Bharti Enterprises for the collapsed satellite internet operator Oneweb, in a move set to put it in competition with Elon Musk’s Starlink.
The government will invest $500m and take a significant equity share in Oneweb, thought to be about 20 per cent.
Oneweb went bust in March after failing to secure new funds from Softbank, its main financier. It is a London-based firm that operates in the UK and US, with 74 satellites currently in orbit and plans for hundreds more.
Bharti, part of a group that controls the world’s third-biggest mobile operator, will lead and run the company. As part of the agreement the group has agreed to bring the manufacturing of the satellites back to the UK from the US.
Business secretary Alok Sharma said: “Our access to a global fleet of satellites has the potential to connect millions of people worldwide to broadband, many for the first time.”
“The deal presents the opportunity to further develop our strong advanced manufacturing base right here in the UK,” he added.
The agreement is subject to US court approval. The government said it is expected to close before the end of the year.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson backed the Bharti consortium last week. The government today said the deal shows its ambition for the UK to be a “pioneer” in developing, building and using new satellite technologies.
The agreement has been in part driven by the UK’s loss of access to the EU’s Galileo satellite-navigation programme. Ministers hope Oneweb’s satellites could deliver a precise navigation system.
It puts the UK in competition with Starlink, Elon Musk’s internet satellite system. Starlink currently has more than 500 satellites in space and plans more this month.
The government said the Oneweb deal “will enable the company to complete construction of a global satellite constellation that will provide enhanced broadband and other services to countries around the world”.