Thales Alenia Space will build six additional radar satellites for Italy's future Iridide Earth observation constellation for about 107 million euros ($116 million), the joint venture between France's Thales and Italy's Leonardo announced on Wednesday.
Under the new contract, the company will build a total of 13 satellites for the Iridide constellation: 12 small, 170-kilogram satellites equipped with synthetic aperture radar (SAR) and one with optical technology.
The Iridide constellation is a €1.1 billion programme, largely funded by Italy's National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR), managed by the European Space Agency on behalf of the Italian Space Agency (ASI) and scheduled to be operational in 2026.
The programme will monitor hydrology, coastlines, forest fires, air quality and weather conditions for Italian public institutions.
The contract, signed by ESA in March 2023, was worth €112 million ($121.5 million) for an initial batch of six small satellites, while the contract for the production of the optical observation satellite was worth €75 million ($81.4 million).
"I would like to thank the European and Italian space agencies for their renewed confidence in Thales Alenia Space's capabilities and expertise," said Giampiero Di Paolo, the company's Senior Vice President for Observation, Exploration and Navigation.
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