EADS Astrium Buys Stake in Brazilian Space Company

BRAZILIA, May 30, 2006/Satnews Daily/ ― EADS Astrium has purchased a 42 percent stake in the Brazilian company Equatorial Sistemas.

EADS said the partnership will strengthen the presence of EADS Astrium in Brazil by enabling it to become a privileged partner in Brazilian space programs in particular those from the Brazilian Space Agency (AEB) and its industrial part the Brazilian National Institute for Space Research (INPE).

EADS Astrium will first provide engineering assistance and Know-How to Equatorial Sistemas, and will supply optical equipment and instruments, and radar systems for Brazilian space programs.

Equatorial Sistemas was founded in 1996 to meet the requirements of the Brazilian space programme. The company designs, manufactures, tests and qualifies aerospace components. Equatorial Sistemas established itself as prime contractor the WFI (Wide Field Instrument) imager for the China-Brazil Earth observation satellite programme and the humidity sounder for NASA’s AQUA satellite. The partnership with EADS Astrium will enable Equatorial Sistemas to develop its capabilities and to acquire new skills in order to become a major industrial partner of the INPE.

EADS Astrium is Europe’s leading satellite system specialist. Its activities cover complete civil and military telecommunications and Earth observation systems, science and navigation programs, and all spacecraft avionics and equipment.

EADS Astrium is a subsidiary of EADS Space. In 2005 EADS Space had a turnover of $3.44 billion (€2.7 billion) and 11,000 employees in France, Germany, the United Kingdom and Spain.

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