- Sateliot is a Spanish startup building a network of over 100 small satellites with global reach that will connect devices in remote, previously unserved areas.
- This is the EIB’s first venture debt operation with a Spanish space company and in the segment of satellite communications.
- The financing is part of the support the EIB is providing to European startups to help them develop cutting-edge space technologies and solutions.
- The operation is backed by the InvestEU programme to mobilise public and private sector funds in support of EU policy goals.
The European Investment Bank (EIB) has signed a €30 million loan with Spanish company Sateliot to co-finance the rollout of its constellation of over 100 LEO (Low Earth Orbit) satellites, providing internet of things (IoT) connectivity across the world.
The Barcelona-based startup is a pioneer in satellite communications and in the European “New Space” industry, where the private sector drives space exploration and commercialisation.
The company is rolling out a network of satellites that act like mobile telecom towers in low Earth orbit, providing 5G narrowband internet of things (5G-NB-IoT) connectivity to over 8 million devices in rural, oceanic, and other remote areas. Traditional mobile operators will be able to use this service to expand the coverage of their ground-based IoT networks to previously unserved areas.
The EIB-financed project will bolster the European Union’s space connectivity and offer low-cost, IoT-based asset monitoring services for use in sectors such as agriculture, livestock management, fisheries and other maritime activities, the management of protected areas, fire control and monitoring, and environmental applications among others.
“This loan shows the EIB’s commitment to innovation and development in the European space sector, thereby supporting the digital transition and contributing to the European Union's strategic autonomy in areas of space and global connectivity in the context of the EIB Strategic European Security Initiative,” said EIB Vice-President, Robert de Groot.
Thes operation will help strengthen the European New Space ecosystem, speeding up the digital transition by connecting millions of previously disconnected devices in remote areas where ground-based IoT connections do not reach. It will also provide connectivity for security applications such as reconnaissance and surveillance, border protection and control, and security infrastructure monitoring.
The EIB loan is guaranteed by InvestEU, the flagship EU programme to mobilise over €372 billion of additional public and private sector investment to support EU policy goals from 2021 to 2027.
“This EIB backing – together with the support that Sateliot has already received from major investor groups and other banks and institutions – gives a huge boost to our development. This capital will be used to move forward with the next stage of our constellation and comes in addition to the income we will begin to receive in 2025 when the four satellites we already have in orbit enter commercial service,” added Sateliot CEO and Co-founder Jaume Sanpera.
The EIB Group and financing the European space industry
The European Union already has historic flagship space programmes like Copernicus and Galileo that provide Europe with autonomous space capabilities. and it is also supporting the European New Space industry via various financing vehicles. The European Investment Fund (EIF) has launched several initiatives such as the InnovFin Space Equity Pilot and CASSINI to back venture capital funds investing in early-stage European space companies.
Furthermore, the EIB is currently ramping up its venture debt and scale-up financing support to highly innovative space companies. With support from the European Commission, the EIB also offers venture debt loans to advanced-stage space companies. Since 2020, the Bank has thus become a key global financier of new space technologies in the European Union, including the recent financing totalling €90 million for European New Space leaders like Spire Global, D-Orbit, EnduroSat, Kayrros, Gomspace and LeafSpace. The Sateliot financing, benefitting from European Commission thematic support under the InvestEU, is the latest addition to the EIB's diversified New Space portfolio, as the first New Space company financed with venture debt in Spain, and the first in the communication segment ever.
Beyond financing, the EIB Group also works with the European Commission to provide advisory services (EIB Advisory) to New Space companies. EIB Advisory put together a market assessment on the European space sector, and launched the Space Finance Lab forum to connect space companies with investors. In 2022, the EIB contributed to the first report on investments in global navigation satellite systems, jointly published with the European Union Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA). Lastly, in 2024, the EIB, the European Space Agency (ESA) and the European Commission signed an agreement to strengthen their cooperation in the sector.
The operation contributes also to the EIB Strategic European Security Initiative (SESI), more info about SESI is available here.
Background information
EIB
The European Investment Bank (EIB) is the long-term lending institution of the European Union owned by its Member States. It finances investments that contribute towards EU policy goals. EIB projects bolster competitiveness, drive innovation, promote sustainable development, enhance social and territorial cohesion, and support a just and swift transition to climate neutrality.
In 2023 the EIB Group – comprising the EIB and the European Investment Fund (EIF) – signed over €11.4 billion in financing for Spain. Of this, around €6.8 billion went to projects for climate action and environmental sustainability. In total, the EIB Group signed €88 billion in new financing in 2023.
InvestEU
The InvestEU programme provides the European Union with crucial long-term funding by leveraging substantial private and public funds in support of a sustainable recovery. It also helps mobilise private investment for EU policy priorities, such as the European Green Deal and the digital transition. The InvestEU programme brings together under one roof the multitude of EU financial instruments previously available to support investment in the Member States, making funding for investment projects in Europe simpler, more efficient and more flexible. The programme consists of three components: the InvestEU Fund, the InvestEU Advisory Hub and the InvestEU Portal. InvestEU Fund resources are channelled through implementing partners that will invest in projects using the EU budget guarantee of €26.2 billion. The entire budget guarantee will back the investment projects of the implementing partners, increase their risk-bearing capacity and thus mobilise at least €372 billion in additional investment.
Sateliot
Sateliot is the first satcom to provide constant global connectivity to all elements of the internet of things under the 5G protocol. With its constellation of state-of-the-art nanosatellites in low Earth orbit operating like mobile phone masts in space, Sateliot is the ideal partner for large telecommunications companies, providing them with the infrastructure they need to extend coverage to areas that ground-based technologies cannot reach. More information is available on the Sateliot website, Twitter and LinkedIn.
