The Australian Ministry of Defense has canceled a multibillion-dollar military satellite project with Lockheed Martin. Instead of a single-orbit system, the country will focus on developing a multi-orbit system to improve defense capabilities.
Australia has canceled a multibillion-dollar military satellite project with Lockheed Martin (LMT.N). According to a statement from the country's Ministry of Defense, the military will instead shift its focus to a multi-orbital system. UNN writes about this with reference to Reuters.
Details
The project to launch a single-orbit satellite with Lockheed Martin, which was supposed to provide Australia's first satellite communications system with sovereign control over the Indo-Pacific Ocean, was canceled.
Due to the accelerated development of space technology and the evolution of threats in space since the project began, the Ministry of Defense assessed that a single-orbit geostationary satellite communications system would not meet strategic priorities
– the Australian Ministry of Defense said in a statement.
Instead, Australia will prefer a multi-orbital system to increase the resilience of the Australian armed forces.
In a radio interview with the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said that while Australia's defense budget is growing, his government is prioritizing its procurement.
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Last year, the Australian company Lockheed Martin was announced as the winner of the tender for the creation of a satellite communication system in the geostationary earth orbit (GEO) as part of this project.
At the time, the government claimed that this was a "multi-billion dollar deal." However, the Defense Ministry has now said it will still allocate more than $13 billion for space capabilities.
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