Eutelsat expects $11 billion revenue after EU's Starlink rival comes online

Eutelsat expects commercial services on IRIS² to generate more than €10 billion between 2032 and 2040. This is a major forecast for a company whose existing video-broadcasting business is weakening. Satellite internet is meant to become a much larger growth engine.

The figure covers commercial services after the network begins operating. Separately, Eutelsat’s backlog includes €8.9 billion for designing and building IRIS², with most of that revenue recognised between 2027 and 2031. Together, these projects could transform the company’s financial scale.

Eutelsat generated €1.24 billion in revenue last year. Its total backlog has now reached €12.1 billion, up from €3.4 billion at the end of June. However, the near-term picture is mixed: first-quarter revenue fell 2.1 per cent like-for-like to €278.3 million, below analysts’ €291 million average. Eutelsat confirmed its financial targets for 2026-27 and 2028-29.

IRIS² is the European Union’s planned satellite communications network. Its low Earth orbit, or LEO, segment will be led by Eutelsat. The network is designed to provide Europe with an alternative to Starlink, the satellite internet service associated with Elon Musk.

The system will use satellites orbiting relatively close to Earth to deliver communications services. Eutelsat will help design and build the network, then provide commercial services. The company expects access to more than twice OneWeb’s current bandwidth, linking IRIS² to a larger future service capacity.

The first IRIS² satellites are scheduled for launch in 2029. Initial services are expected from 2030. Eutelsat has €8.9 billion of IRIS² design-and-build revenue in its backlog, mostly due between 2027 and 2031. The project matters strategically because Europe is trying to reduce its reliance on US technology, especially after Donald Trump returned to office.

The planned IRIS² network will feature 330 satellites. That gives the European project a clearly defined constellation scale, rather than relying on a small number of spacecraft. Its purpose is to support satellite communications and provide Europe with an alternative to Starlink.

The first satellites are scheduled for launch in 2029. Initial services are expected to begin in 2030. Eutelsat will lead the network’s low Earth orbit segment, making it central to both the construction programme and the future commercial offering.

The schedule also creates a long financial runway. Eutelsat expects to recognise most of the €8.9 billion design-and-build backlog between 2027 and 2031, before the main commercial-services forecast begins. It expects more than €10 billion from those services between 2032 and 2040. Eutelsat plans to invest €3.39 billion in shared and commercial infrastructure between 2027 and 2034.

Building and operating IRIS² could change Eutelsat from a company centered more heavily on video broadcasting into a major satellite-internet provider. Eutelsat expects commercial IRIS² services to produce more than €10 billion between 2032 and 2040. That would create a large new revenue stream as broadcasting declines.

The financial effect starts before services launch. Eutelsat’s backlog includes €8.9 billion from designing and building IRIS², mainly recognised between 2027 and 2031. The company also plans to invest €3.39 billion in shared and commercial infrastructure between 2027 and 2034. In return, it expects access to more than twice OneWeb’s current bandwidth.

The opportunity is substantial, but current results remain uneven. Eutelsat’s first-quarter operating revenue fell 2.1 per cent like-for-like to €278.3 million. Its total backlog nevertheless rose to €12.1 billion from €3.4 billion at end-June. The new network is intended to offset the weakening broadcasting business over time.

The European Union wants greater control over its satellite-internet infrastructure. The article links this effort to Europe’s attempt to reduce the bloc’s reliance on US technology, particularly after President Donald Trump’s return to office. IRIS² is therefore both a communications project and a strategic alternative to Starlink.

The EU plans to use IRIS²’s low Earth orbit segment to build a European-backed network. Eutelsat has been chosen to lead that segment. The network will feature 330 satellites, with initial services expected from 2030. Its planned capacity is intended to support a substantial commercial and shared infrastructure system.

Eutelsat’s position is strengthened by its ownership of OneWeb, described as the only LEO satellite network alternative to SpaceX’s Starlink. OneWeb already has more than 600 satellites, with 229 more planned in a €1 billion expansion. IRIS² would give Europe another route to satellite connectivity and more than twice OneWeb’s current bandwidth.

Eutelsat has two connected roles in Europe’s challenge to Starlink. It was chosen to lead the low Earth orbit segment of the EU’s IRIS² network. That makes it responsible for a central part of the planned 330-satellite system and its future services.

Eutelsat is also the owner of OneWeb, an existing LEO satellite network. OneWeb has more than 600 satellites, and 229 additional satellites are planned in a €1 billion expansion. This gives Eutelsat operational experience and an established constellation while IRIS² is still being developed.

For IRIS², Eutelsat will receive €8.9 billion of backlog revenue for designing and building the network, mostly between 2027 and 2031. It plans to invest €3.39 billion in shared and commercial infrastructure from 2027 to 2034. In return, Eutelsat expects access to more than twice OneWeb’s current bandwidth. The two networks support Europe’s effort to reduce dependence on Starlink.

Low Earth orbit satellite internet uses satellites to relay data between ground users, gateways, and communications networks. Because these satellites orbit closer to Earth than higher satellites, signals generally travel a shorter distance. That can support faster responses and broadband connections, although the article itself does not explain this mechanism.

A LEO satellite does not remain above one location. It moves across the sky and covers only part of the service area at any moment. A large constellation allows another satellite to take over as one moves away. Ground equipment can switch between satellites, keeping a connection available.

That is why these systems need hundreds or thousands of satellites rather than one spacecraft. OneWeb already has more than 600 satellites, while IRIS² is planned to feature 330. The article says IRIS²’s first satellites should launch in 2029, with initial services expected from 2030. These figures show the scale required for broad coverage.