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Corporate June 16, 2015

2015 Paris Air Show: Arianespace ready to meet new challenges in space

Arianespace has risen to the challenge of using space to make people's lives better on Earth for over 35 years by providing launch services and solutions for all types of satellites, both government and commercial, to all orbits.

Using its family of three launchers – Ariane, Vega and Soyuz – Arianespace has already launched more than 510 satellites for over 95 customers. Building on this long-standing expertise, Arianespace is rising to the challenges of a changing space sector to sustain its global leadership.

Arianespace mobilized to ensure the future of the European launcher industry

Arianespace is playing an active role in the initiative to improve the competitiveness of the European launcher industry.

  • With its partners, savings will be realized across the Ariane 5 and Vega families, even before the advent of Ariane 6 and Vega C. These savings are vital to stand up to heightened competition.
  • The changes in Arianespace’s shareholding structure entailed by the agreement between Airbus Safran Launchers, the French government and the French space agency CNES, will benefit our customers. These changes will enable stronger synergies to be generated with the two companies, respecting all of our shareholders and our mission to guarantee independent access to space for Europe. In total, the goal is to create a greater continuity between industry and the market.
  • Arianespace also plans to continue its active role in contributing to the preparations for Ariane 6 and Vega C. Based on its long operating experience and extensive knowledge of customers, Arianespace will contribute to reliable, available, competitively-priced launch solutions.

Meeting new market requirements and supporting innovative applications

Since the last Paris Air Show in June 2013, nine new operators have chosen Arianespace. This brings the total number of customers for the European launch services operator to more than 95 since 1980, with 34 customers currently in the order book.

Based on a complete family of launch vehicles and top-flight launch solutions, Arianespace continues to prove its ability to address new requirements in the satellite market. As examples:

  • Ariane 5: two Ariane 5 launch contracts for satellites with all-electric propulsion: Eutelsat 172B for the operator Eutelsat, and SES-15 for the operator SES.
  • Vega: six new commercial contracts for the launch of high-resolution Earth observation satellites. This signals Vega’s export breakthrough in a growing market segment, including solutions for private sector companies such as Google/Skybox Imaging, for which a satellite cluster will be launched by Vega in 2016.
  • Soyuz: deployment of constellations for commercial or government customers, including the launch of twelve O3b satellites and four Galileo satellites by Soyuz, which demonstrates, the medium launcher’s excellent fit with this type of mission and innovative constellations.

Arianespace: a host of advantages to consolidate its benchmark position

Arianespace offers tailored launch solutions needed by all customers, by developing services adapted to their expectations in all relevant areas, whether technical, financial or for insurance. This unrivaled expertise makes Arianespace the global benchmark in the launch services sector, a position based on:

  • Unrivaled reliability and availability:
    • 65 successful Ariane 5 launches in a row.
    • 11 launches performed in 2014, proving Arianespace’s launch capacity at the Guiana Space Center.
    • A launch capacity and flexibility improved even further in 2015, with the commissioning of a new building at the launch base.
  • Record order book
    Arianespace has an order book worth more than €4 billion from 34 customers, with over 70 satellites to be launched. This equals more than three years of business for the company, based on 23 Ariane 5 launches, including 37 satellites to be boosted into geostationary transfer orbit and four dedicated missions; plus five Soyuz launches and 11 Vega launches.
  • Seasoned and committed people, passionate about their professions, a vital human capital to support our customers.

As the 2015 Paris Air Show opened its doors, Arianespace Chairman and CEO Stéphane Israël said: “We are in the midst of an exciting moment for space transport. Everything is changing, including satellites, with the advent of electric propulsion and new applications; our customers, with the emergence of new players; and the competitive landscape, stronger than ever. At Arianespace we have addressed these profound changes by adapting our launch solutions to our customers’s new requirements, by intensifying our efforts in competitiveness, by actively gearing up for the introduction of Ariane 6 and Vega C, and working with our partners for the planned new governance and a renewed shareholding structure that will bring industry closer to the market. That’s how we will rise to the new challenges in space and continue to affirm our leadership.”

About Arianespace

Arianespace is the world’s leading satellite launch company, providing innovation to its customers since 1980. Backed by 20 shareholders and the European Space Agency, the company offers an international workforce renowned for a culture of commitment and excellence. Arianespace is the only operator in the world capable of launching any mass to any orbit from the Guiana Space Center. As of June 16, 2015, 223 Ariane launches, 37 Soyuz launches (10 at the Guiana Space Centre and 26 at Baikonur with Starsem) and four Vega launches have been performed. The company’s headquarters is in Evry, near Paris, and has local offices in Washington DC (United States), Tokyo (Japan) and Singapore.

Salon du Bourget 2015 : Arianespace mobilisée pour répondre aux nouveaux défis de l’espace
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