Latest news with #Franco-British
Time of India
4 hours ago
- Business
- Time of India
South Korea's Hanwha offloads Eutelsat stake as Starlink rival seeks new investors
By Gianluca Lo Nostro South Korea's Hanwha Systems said on Thursday it was selling its entire 5.4% stake in Eutelsat for about 78 million euros ($85 million), as the Franco-British satellite operator seeks new investors. Eutelsat has garnered unprecedented attention this year from governments looking for home-grown alternatives to SpaceX's Starlink for satellite internet connectivity. The company is working on a new financing plan to fund the second generation of its low Earth orbit (LEO) OneWeb satellites and to fulfil commitments to the European Union 's IRIS² project. It has piled up hundreds of millions of euros in losses, particularly from its waning video business, while its 2023 acquisition of OneWeb has yet to yield the results it had hoped for due to competition and delayed deployment of technology. Finance chief Christophe Caudrelier said in May that Eutelsat was looking for capital investors. Hanwha's shares were offered at 3.00 euros ($3.42) apiece, representing a 13.9% discount to Eutelsat's closing price of 3.48 euros on Wednesday, a term sheet from bookrunner Citi showed. It also marks a steep 74% loss on Hanwha's initial $300 million investment made in OneWeb in 2021, with the stake now valued at just $85 million. The South Korean company said the sale, which is set to be concluded on Thursday, was not driven by an investment perspective but by a strategic shift to focus more on its core business operations. "This decision reflects a long-term strategy to concentrate on defense-related satellites and military communications , rather than on civilian satellite operations and services," Hanwha said in a statement to Reuters. A representative for Hanwha resigned from Eutelsat's board in April, signalling the company's diminishing involvement with the satellite operator. MAJOR OVERHAUL When asked by Reuters, Eutelsat said none of the other shareholders had expressed interest in selling their shares. A company spokesperson declined to comment on media reports saying France may raise its stake in the group. Eutelsat is also reshuffling its upper echelons. In a surprise move last month, it appointed Jean-Francois Fallacher as its new CEO and it is looking for a new chairperson after the current one announced his departure in February. Eutelsat's Paris-listed shares fell as much as 16.8% in early trading on Thursday. Hanwha became a shareholder in OneWeb before it merged with Eutelsat. It is also one of OneWeb's distributors in South Korea as part of an agreement signed in 2023 with the aim of securing LEO communications for the government and providing internet access to underserved areas. Last week, South Korea's Science Ministry granted licenses to Starlink and Eutelsat OneWeb to operate in the country, with services expected to be launched soon.
Korea Herald
7 hours ago
- Business
- Korea Herald
Hanwha offloads Eutelsat stake as Starlink rival seeks new investors
South Korea's Hanwha Systems said on Thursday it was selling its entire 5.4 percent stake in Eutelsat for 77.6 million euros ($88.5 million), as the Franco-British satellite operator seeks new investors. Eutelsat has garnered unprecedented attention this year from governments looking for home-grown alternatives to SpaceX's Starlink for satellite internet connectivity. The company is working on a new financing plan to fund the second generation of its low Earth orbit (LEO) OneWeb satellites and to fulfil commitments to the European Union's IRIS² project. It has piled up hundreds of millions of euros in losses, particularly from its waning video business, while its 2023 acquisition of OneWeb has yet to yield the results it had hoped for due to competition and delayed deployment of technology. Finance chief Christophe Caudrelier said in May that Eutelsat was looking for capital investors. Hanwha's shares were offered at 3.00 euros ($3.42) apiece, representing a 13.9 percent discount to Eutelsat's closing price of 3.48 euros on Wednesday, a term sheet from bookrunner Citi showed. It also marks a steep 70.5 percent loss on Hanwha's initial $300 million investment made in OneWeb in 2021, with the stake now valued at just $88.5 million. Eutelsat's Paris-listed shares fell 14.8 percent by 0920 GMT. Only 21 percent of Eutelsat's shares are publicly traded, making the stock prone to sharp price swings. However, the yield on its 2029 9.75 percent bond fell to 7.71 percent, showing a positive shift in bondholder confidence. Hanwha said the sale, which was set to be concluded on Thursday, was not driven by an investment perspective but by a strategic shift to focus more on its core business operations. "This decision reflects a long-term strategy to concentrate on defense-related satellites and military communications, rather than on civilian satellite operations and services," Hanwha said in a statement to Reuters. A representative for the South Korean company resigned from Eutelsat's board in April, signalling its diminishing involvement with the satellite operator. Major overhaul When asked by Reuters, Eutelsat said none of the other shareholders had expressed interest in selling their shares. A company spokesperson declined to comment on media reports saying France may raise its stake in the group. Bloomberg News and The Telegraph have reported that France is considering doubling its stake in Eutelsat and is in talks to raise 1.5 billion euros. Eutelsat is also reshuffling its upper echelons. In a surprise move last month, it appointed Jean-François Fallacher as its new CEO and it is looking for a new chairperson after the current one announced his departure in February. Hanwha became a shareholder in OneWeb before it merged with Eutelsat, and it is one of OneWeb's distributors in South Korea as part of an agreement signed in 2023 with the aim of securing LEO communications for the government and providing internet access to underserved areas. Last week, South Korea's Science Ministry granted licenses to Starlink and Eutelsat OneWeb to operate in the country, with services expected to be launched soon.
The Star
12 hours ago
- Business
- The Star
South Korea's Hanwha to offload Eutelsat stake, filing shows
The logo of the European satellite operator Eutelsat is seen at the company's headquarters in Issy-les-Moulineaux near Paris, France, October 11, 2021. REUTERS/Gonzalo Fuentes (Reuters) -South Korea's Hanwha Systems is offering to sell its entire 5.4% stake in Eutelsat for about 78 million euros ($85 million), a bookrunner filing showed on Wednesday, as the satellite operator moves ahead with its new financing plan. Eutelsat has garnered unprecedented attention this year from governments looking for home-grown alternatives to SpaceX's Starlink for satellite internet connectivity. The Franco-British company is seeking billions in new funding to finance the second generation of its low Earth orbit (LEO) OneWeb satellites and to fulfil commitments to the European Union's IRIS² project. Finance chief Christophe Caudrelier said in May that Eutelsat was looking for capital investors. Hanwha's shares are being offered at 3.00 euros ($3.42) apiece, representing a 13.9% discount to Eutelsat's closing price of 3.48 euros on Wednesday, a term sheet from bookrunner Citi showed. It also marks a steep 74% loss on Hanwha's initial $300 million investment made in OneWeb in 2021, as the stake is now valued at just $85 million. The trade is set to be concluded on Thursday. A representative for Hanwha resigned from Eutelsat's board in April, signalling the Korean company's diminishing involvement with the satellite operator. Eutelsat is reshuffling its upper echelons. In a surprise move last month, it appointed Jean-François Fallacher as its new CEO and it is also looking for a new chairperson after the current one announced his departure along with four other board members in February. Hanwha became a shareholder in OneWeb before it merged with Eutelsat in 2023, joining India's Bharti and Japan's SoftBank as OneWeb's anchor investors at the time. It is also one of OneWeb's distributors in South Korea as part of an agreement signed in 2023 with the aim of securing LEO communications for the Korean government and providing internet access to underserved areas. Last week, South Korea's Science Ministry granted licenses to Starlink and Eutelsat OneWeb to operate in the country, with services expected to be launched soon. ($1 = 0.8764 euros) (Reporting by Gianluca Lo Nostro in Gdansk, editing by Milla Nissi-Prussak)
Yahoo
13 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
South Korea's Hanwha to offload Eutelsat stake, filing shows
By Gianluca Lo Nostro (Reuters) -South Korea's Hanwha Systems is offering to sell its entire 5.4% stake in Eutelsat for about 78 million euros ($85 million), a bookrunner filing showed on Wednesday, as the satellite operator moves ahead with its new financing plan. Eutelsat has garnered unprecedented attention this year from governments looking for home-grown alternatives to SpaceX's Starlink for satellite internet connectivity. The Franco-British company is seeking billions in new funding to finance the second generation of its low Earth orbit (LEO) OneWeb satellites and to fulfil commitments to the European Union's IRIS² project. Finance chief Christophe Caudrelier said in May that Eutelsat was looking for capital investors. Hanwha's shares are being offered at 3.00 euros ($3.42) apiece, representing a 13.9% discount to Eutelsat's closing price of 3.48 euros on Wednesday, a term sheet from bookrunner Citi showed. It also marks a steep 74% loss on Hanwha's initial $300 million investment made in OneWeb in 2021, as the stake is now valued at just $85 million. The trade is set to be concluded on Thursday. A representative for Hanwha resigned from Eutelsat's board in April, signalling the Korean company's diminishing involvement with the satellite operator. Eutelsat is reshuffling its upper echelons. In a surprise move last month, it appointed Jean-François Fallacher as its new CEO and it is also looking for a new chairperson after the current one announced his departure along with four other board members in February. Hanwha became a shareholder in OneWeb before it merged with Eutelsat in 2023, joining India's Bharti and Japan's SoftBank as OneWeb's anchor investors at the time. It is also one of OneWeb's distributors in South Korea as part of an agreement signed in 2023 with the aim of securing LEO communications for the Korean government and providing internet access to underserved areas. Last week, South Korea's Science Ministry granted licenses to Starlink and Eutelsat OneWeb to operate in the country, with services expected to be launched soon. ($1 = 0.8764 euros)
The Star
2 days ago
- Business
- The Star
Macron to visit Meloni after rivalry creates tension on Ukraine, trade
FILE PHOTO: French President Emmanuel Macron and Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni deliver remarks at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, on June 20, 2023. LUDOVIC MARIN/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo PARIS/ROME (Reuters) -French President Emmanuel Macron will visit Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on Tuesday, seeking to improve relations amid tensions between the two European leaders over Ukraine, trade and relations with the United States. Macron is a fervent pro-European who has had a long rapport with Donald Trump, while Meloni is a nationalist with a strong transatlantic tilt who seems more ideologically aligned with the U.S. president. They have advocated different -- even competing - approaches to the new Trump era. Meloni, whose country has a large trade surplus with the U.S., has sought to keep Europe aligned with the U.S., using the slogan "Make the West great again" in a meeting with Trump in Washington in April. Macron has pushed for the EU to take a more independent approach. On the Russian war in Ukraine, Meloni has been sceptical about Macron's "coalition of the willing" and a Franco-British plan put forward earlier this year to send peacekeeping troops to Ukraine in the event of a peace agreement. Sending troops would be deeply unpopular in Italy. Hostility flared publicly in recent weeks, with officials close to Macron and Meloni privately or openly criticising their respective initiatives over Ukraine or trade. Meloni was criticised in Italy for not travelling to Kyiv with Macron and the German, British and Polish leaders on May 10 and then for missing a call with Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy at a summit in Albania a few days later. After Meloni explained her absence by saying the meetings were about sending troops to Ukraine, her government was furious that Macron said publicly that the meetings were about a ceasefire and seemed to equate her justification with "Russian disinformation". French and Italian officials said Macron had taken the initiative to hold Tuesday's meeting and sought to play down talk of a rift, saying the meeting and a working dinner would be an opportunity for Macron to show "respect" and "friendship". "The president is available to all of our European partners, whatever the political persuasion may be," an Elysee official told reporters. The Elysee said the two would discuss security guarantees for Ukraine, the Mercosur trade deal and U.S. tariffs, as well as industrial cooperation between the two countries, including Franco-Italian carmaker Stellantis, which appointed a new Italian chief executive last month. Italian officials said the meeting was meant to "lay the foundations for a further strengthening of relations" and added that talks would also address the situation in the Middle East and Libya. Both Italy and France are worried Russia might boost its presence in eastern Libya, to keep a foothold in the Mediterranean after Moscow's ally President Bashar al-Assad was ousted in Syria in December. "This Macron-Meloni meeting isn't about rekindling Franco-Italian friendship. It's about necessity, not nostalgia," said Francesco Galietti of Rome-based consultancy Policy Sonar, saying the two capitals should find common ground on Libya "fast". (Writing by Michel RoseEditing by Frances Kerry)
