Iris² promises to provide European governments and citizens with high connectivity speeds via a €10.6 billion satellite network.
It was announced two years ago that the EU was working on Iris². The project was to establish a sovereign communications service within member states. However, the talks were fraught because of raising costs and potential risks. That is now changing with a decision by the European Commission. The project, initially estimated at €6 billion, will now have a price tag of €10.6 billion. 61 percent of that amount will be financed with public money.
The industrial consortium SpaceRise will play a major role in the project. In addition to financial contributions from public money, the consortium will be involved in the design, construction and operation of Iris² for 12 years. SpaceRise includes Airbus, Deutsche Telekom, Thales and others.
The project is intended to eventually make 290 satellites operational around Earth. Communication services should be available by 2030. Most of the capacity will be used for businesses and households. In addition, some of the capacity is intended for government applications such as surveillance and crisis management.
The European Commission sees its own communications network in space as strategically important. “Iris² underpins our strategic autonomy and defence capacity, promotes our competitiveness, and energises public and private sectors co-operation,” said director-general for defense, industry and space Timo Pesonen.