- The investment will be made via EQT Infrastructure VI fund
- The transaction is expected to close in Q1 of 2026
- Eutelsat is a satellite operator based in France
EQT has entered exclusive negotiations to acquire an 80 percent stake in Eutelsat Group’s Satellite Ground Station infrastructure business. The transaction values the new entity at an enterprise value of €790 million.
The transaction would carve out passive assets, including land, buildings, support infrastructure, antennas and connectivity circuits, to form a new company that will become a standalone legal entity and will be rebranded after closing of the transaction, with the headquarters to remain in France.
The Ground Station business is a global infrastructure platform that consists around 1,400 antennas across more than 100 locations globally, enabling satellite communications for Eutelsat Group, OneWeb and other third-party customers. It benefits from serving both Geostationary Orbit and Low Earth Orbit satellites used for a diverse range of applications including connectivity and broadcasting.
The investment will be made via EQT Infrastructure VI fund, its latest in France. The previous investments include Trescal and Ocea Group.
“At EQT, we identified satellite ground stations as an attractive digital infrastructure vertical several years ago,” said Carl Sjölund, partner within the EQT value-add infrastructure advisory team, in a statement. “They play an important role in ensuring global connectivity, especially for those not covered by fixed and mobile connectivity solutions and require deep global expertise in developing and operating telecommunications infrastructure businesses.”
The continued deployment of satellites is expected to render strong demand for existing and new ground station infrastructure over the coming decade, according to a release.
EQT will support the Ground Station business by investing in upgrading and building new sites, notably for Low Earth Orbit antennas, as well as pursuit of inorganic growth opportunities across the vast and fragmented global ground station market, the release said.
The transaction is subject to customary regulatory conditions and approvals and is expected to close in Q1 of 2026.
Eutelsat Group will remain as long-term shareholder, anchor tenant and partner of the new company with a 20 percent stake.
EQT is a global investment firm with €246 billion in total assets under management.
Eutelsat is a satellite operator based in France.
EQT was advised by Rothschild (M&A), BCG (commercial, IT and carve-out), A&O Shearman (M&A counsel), Paul Weiss (financing counsel), KPMG (financial and tax), NovaSpace (technical).