Arianespace

Arianespace
Launch Service Provider
Industry Aerospace
Founded 1980
Headquarters Courcouronnes, France
Revenue Increase €1.433 billion (2015)
Increase €4 million (2015)
Number of employees
 321[1]
Website arianespace.com

Arianespace SA is a French multinational company founded in 1980 as the world's first commercial launch service provider.[2] It undertakes the production, operation, and marketing of the Ariane programme.[3] The main launch vehicles offered by the company are the Ariane 5, the Soyuz-2 as a medium-lift alternative, and the Vega as a lighter one.[4]

As of 2008, more than 240 commercial launches have occurred since May 22, 1984. Arianespace states that the total number of launch contracts signed since Ariane launches commenced operations in 1984 is 285.[3] Arianespace uses the Centre Spatial Guyanais in French Guiana as a launch site. It has its headquarters in Courcouronnes, Essonne, France,[5] near Évry.[6]

On 21 October 2011 Arianespace launched the first Soyuz rocket ever from outside former Soviet territory. The payload was two Galileo navigation satellites.[7]

The company and its infrastructure

Arianespace primary shareholders are its suppliers, in the various nations of the European Union.[8] Arianespace currently has 20 shareholders:[9]

Country Total share Shareholder Capital
 Germany 19.85% Airbus Safran Launchers GmbH 11.59%
MT Aerospace AG 8.26%
 Belgium 3.36% SABCA 2.71%
Thales Alenia Space Belgium 0.33%
Techspace Aero SA 0.32%
 Denmark - Christian Rovsing A/S -
 Spain 2.15% Airbus Defence and Space SAU 2.04%
CRISA 0.11%
 France 64.10% ARIANESPACE PARTICIPATION -
CNES 34.68%
Airbus Safran Launchers Holding 27.42%
Air Liquide SA 1.89%
Clemessy 0.11%
CIE Deutsche -
 Italy 3.38% Avio S.p.A. 3.38%
 Netherlands 1.94% Airbus Defence and Space B.V. 1.94%
 Norway 0.11% Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace AS 0.11%
 Sweden 2.45% RUAG Space AB 0.82%
GKN Aerospace Sweden AB 1.63%
  Switzerland 2.67% RUAG Schweiz AG 2.67%

Arianespace shareholding is currently being restructured with the creation of an Airbus-Safran joint venture that will develop and manufacture the Ariane 6 launcher. Their subsidiaries shareholdings will be pooled along with the purchase of the French governments CNES stake. Airbus-Safran once the restructure is complete will have a 76% shareholding while the remaining 24% will be spread across ten countries.[10]

Corporate management

Position Name[11]
CEO & Chairman Stéphane Israël
Senior Vice-President, Programs Louis Laurent
Senior Vice-President, Sales & Customers Jacques Breton
Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officer Thomas Hundt
Vice President, Corporate Communication Isabelle Veillon

Offices

Location of Office Head of Branch
French Guiana Patrick Loire
USA Clayton Mowry
Japan Kiyoshi Takamatsu
Singapore Richard Bowles

Subsidiaries

Competition and pricing

In 2004, Arianespace held more than 50 percent of the world market for boosting satellites to geostationary transfer orbit (GTO).[12]

The disruptive force represented in new sector entrant SpaceX, forced Arianespace to cut workforce, and focus on cost-cutting, to decrease costs to remain competitive against the new low-cost entrant in the launch sector. According to one Arianespace managing director, ""It's quite clear there's a very significant challenge coming from SpaceX," he said. "Therefore things have to change … and the whole European industry is being restructured, consolidated, rationalised and streamlined."[13]

In the midst of pricing pressure from U.S. company SpaceX, Arianespace made a November 2013 announcement of pricing flexibility for the "lighter satellites" it carries to Geostationary orbits aboard its Ariane 5.[14] In early 2014, Arianespace requested additional subsidies from European governments to face the competition from SpaceX and unfavorable changes in the Euro-Dollar exchange rate.[15] Reducing pricing allowed Arianespace to sign four additional contracts in September 2014 for a lower slots on an Ariane 5 SYLDA dispenser for the satellites that otherwise could be flown on SpaceX launch vehicle. Overall Arianespace signed 11 contracts in 2014 until September with two additional being in a late stage of negotiations. As of September 2014 Arianespace has a backlog of launches worth €4.5 billion with 38 satellites to be launched on Ariane 5, 7 on Soyuz and 9 on Vega, claiming 60% of global satellite launch market.[16][17][18] By November 2014, SpaceX had "already begun to take market share"[8] from Arianespace, and Eutelsat CEO Michel de Rosen—a major customer of Arianespace—said that "Each year that passes will see SpaceX advance, gain market share and further reduce its costs through economies of scale."[8]

Launch Vehicles

Currently Arianespace operates 3 launch vehicles, including two versions of Ariane 5:

Name Payload to LEO (including SSO) Payload to GTO
Vega 1,450 kilograms (3,200 lb) -
Soyuz 4,400 kilograms (9,700 lb) 3,250 kilograms (7,170 lb)
Ariane 5 ECA - 10,500 kilograms (23,100 lb)
Ariane 5 ES 21,000 kilograms (46,000 lb) -

Additionally Arianespace offers optional back-up launch service on H-IIA through Launch Services Alliance.[19]

Ariane launch vehicles

Since the first launch in 1979, there have been several versions of the Ariane launch vehicle:

Ariane's Cup

The Ariane's Cup is a sailing competition organized on behalf of the Industrials participating in the Ariane programme.


See also

References

  1. ↑ 2014 Annual Report (PDF) (Report). Courcouronnes, France: Arianespace. 15 June 2015. Retrieved 6 August 2015.
  2. ↑ "Ariane - The first commercial space transportation system". adsabs.harvard.edu. Retrieved 2008-03-07.
  3. 1 2 "Arianespace was founded in 1980 as the world’s first launch services and solutions company.". arianespace.com. Archived from the original on February 18, 2008. Retrieved 2008-03-07.
  4. ↑ "Service & Solutions". arianespace.com. Archived from the original on 12 February 2011. Retrieved 2011-02-15.
  5. ↑ "Russians, French sign space contract.(UPI Science Report)." United Press International. 12 April 2005. Retrieved on 24 September 2009.
  6. ↑ "Contact us." Arianespace. Retrieved on 24 September 2009.
  7. ↑ "Arianespace Launches First European Soyuz". Interspacenews.com. Retrieved 2011-12-17.
  8. 1 2 3 de Selding, Peter B. (2014-11-20). "Europe’s Satellite Operators Urge Swift Development of Ariane 6". SpaceNews. Retrieved 2014-11-21. France-based Arianespace has responded by squeezing, to a limited degree, its supplier base. But Ariane 5 builders are also Arianespace shareholders, limiting the company’s leverage on them.
  9. ↑ "Shareholders". Arianespace. Retrieved 9 September 2014.
  10. ↑ http://www.satellitetoday.com/launch/2015/06/16/airbus-safran-launchers-gains-cnes-35-percent-stake-in-arianespace/
  11. ↑ "Management team". Arianespace. Retrieved 8 September 2014.
  12. ↑ John McCormick (2004). The European Union (3 ed.). Westview Press. p. 273. ISBN 978-0-8133-4202-3.
  13. ↑ David Ramli (19 May 2015). "NBN launcher Arianespace to cut jobs and costs to fight SpaceX". The Sydney Morning Herald (Australia).
  14. ↑ de Selding, Peter B. (2013-11-25). "SpaceX Challenge Has Arianespace Rethinking Pricing Policies". Space News. Retrieved 2013-11-27. The Arianespace commercial launch consortium is telling its customers it is open to reducing the cost of flights for lighter satellites on the Ariane 5 rocket in response to the challenge posed by SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket.
  15. ↑ Svitak, Amy (2014-02-11). "Arianespace To ESA: We Need Help". Aviation Week. Retrieved 2014-02-12.
  16. ↑ "Arianespace nets four commercial launch contracts". 8 September 2014. Retrieved 9 September 2014.
  17. ↑ "World Satellite Business Week 2014: A rich harvest of contracts for Arianespace" (Press release). 8 September 2014. Retrieved 9 September 2014.
  18. ↑ "Europe's Arianespace Claims 60% Of The Commercial Launch Market". 9 September 2014. Retrieved 9 September 2014.
  19. ↑ "Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and Arianespace conclude MOU on cooperation in commercial space rocket launches". Arianespace. 7 June 2013. Retrieved 18 August 2014.
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