OHB to build 18 satellites for EU IRIS² constellation in €1 billion deal

OHB has signed a contract worth nearly one billion euros with SES to develop and produce 18 satellite platforms for the IRIS² constellation. These satellites will operate in Medium Earth Orbit (MEO) to provide secure satellite communications for European public institutions, emergency services, and commercial users.

IRIS², which stands for Infrastructure for Resilience, Interconnectivity and Security by Satellite, is the European Union’s third major space program following Galileo and Copernicus. The project aims to strengthen European sovereignty in satellite communications. The total constellation is planned to consist of 348 satellites: 330 in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) for low-latency communications and 18 in MEO to provide broader coverage.

Each MEO satellite is expected to have a launch mass of approximately 2.6 tonnes and a maximum power of about 15 kW. This contract marks the first major industrial award following the official implementation phase of the program, which began with an agreement between the European Commission and the SpaceRISE consortium, comprising SES, Eutelsat, and Hispasat.