Dag Stølan (CEO Space Norway), Jan Christian Vestre (Norwegian Minister of Trade and Industry) and Dan Ouchterlony (EVP and Head of Telenor Amp).
Established in 2014, Space Norway is wholly owned by the Norwegian government. The company has launched several satellites, including NorSat-1, NorSat-2, and NorSat-3, which are used for maritime surveillance, environmental monitoring, and other applications.
“For more than 20 years, we have served our customers with premium, high-quality broadcasting and data services via satellite. Now the time has come for a new era for Telenor Satellite,” said says Dan Ouchterlony, EVP and Head of Telenor Amp. “With Space Norway, Telenor Satellite will have an industrial owner who has the right competence and who will prioritise the required financial resources to realise the company’s potential. We are proud of what we have achieved together and look forward to following the company’s future development”.
Because of its ownership status, the transction will first require the approval of the Norwegian parliamenr. It is expected to close in January 2024.
Dag H. Stølan, CEO at Space Norway, added: “Satellite-based capabilities are more important than ever. The combination of Space Norway’s partly governmental customers and Telenor Satellite’s commercial customer base will give the new company a strong platform to grow the business in both sectors. We are very excited to enter into this agreement and look forward to contributing to the long-term development of Telenor Satellite”.
Telenor and Space Norway have already signed a letter of intent outlining a strategic partnership and possible joint business development initiatives, in particular regarding additional satellite capacity and satellite consulting services.
Telenor Satellite owns and operates Thor 7, Thor 6 and Thor 5, positioned at the one degree West satellite neighbourhood. It also leases the Spot 1 and Spot 2 payload from Intelsat, named Thir 10-02 S1 and S2, located at the same position.
