Britain is spending €163 million to help a satellite company called Eutelsat. France is also putting in a lot more money, €750 million, to be exact. Together, they’re giving Eutelsat a total boost of €1.5 billion.
Why? They want Eutelsat to compete with Starlink, Elon Musk’s space internet company.
Right now, Starlink has the biggest group of satellites in the world. Eutelsat is in second place. It has 34 big satellites and over 600 small ones flying around the Earth. That’s impressive, but still far behind Starlink.
Europe wants its own strong satellite company. After the war in Ukraine and some “America First” politics from former U.S. President Trump, Europe decided it should not depend too much on the U.S. for space or internet technology.
French President Emmanuel Macron, who is currently visiting Britain, thanked the UK for its help. He was happy Britain didn’t walk away from this space mission, even after leaving the European Union.
France will soon become the biggest owner of Eutelsat, while Britain will keep its 10.89% stake. This lets Britain stay in the game, and avoid being pushed aside as France takes more control. Britain will also keep a special “golden share,” which gives it the power to stop big decisions about OneWeb, the UK-based part of Eutelsat.
This move could also help Britain get involved in the EU’s new space project called IRIS². Even after Brexit, Britain still wants to be part of Europe’s space future, at least when satellites are involved.
UK Science Minister Peter Kyle said space technology is important for national security. He also said this shows Britain’s commitment to staying strong in global tech.
Eutelsat’s stock is doing well. It’s up 64% this year, thanks to all the money from France and now the UK. Investors are hopeful Eutelsat can become a real challenger to Starlink.
To sum it up: Britain and France are throwing money into space. They want Europe to have its own space internet system, not just rely on Elon Musk. It’s a big bet on satellites, and a reminder that even after Brexit, space is one thing the UK doesn’t want to leave behind.
