Airbus announced additional write-offs 300 million euros for its space programs, after finishing viewing the unspecified project. This became part of a broader assessment of financial risks, ongoing in the company's space division.
Financial adjustments and business impact
- Additional costs:
- 300 million euros in the fourth quarter 2024 year.
- Earlier, in June 2024 year, the company has already written off 900 millions of euros.
- General write-offs for 2024 made a year 1,3 billion euros.
- Reasons for financial losses:
- Incorrect assessment of technological risks during the conclusion of contracts.
- Supply chain issues, which forced Airbus to revise its production strategy.
The company stated, which does not expect new costs in 2025 year, because she finished reviewing all space projects.
Job cuts in the defense and space division
- Airbus continues negotiations on a plan to cut back to 2500 jobs in the Defense and Space division to the middle 2026 year.
- Expected, that these exemptions will be allocated 200 millions of euros, after the final plan is approved.
Consolidation of European space companies
Airbus is in talks with Leonardo and Thales Alenia Space about a possible merger of their space businesses.
- Objectives of the association:
- Increasing the scale of production to compete with American companies.
- Accelerated introduction of new technologies, especially in the field of satellite groups.
- A role model:
- Airbus seeks to create an analogue of MBDA, a European missile manufacturer, which was formed in 2001 year through the merger of several companies.
- Such an association could become a stable global player, able to attract investments and expand in the international market.
Challenges are possible
- Regulation by EU antitrust authorities may become an obstacle to mergers.
- Airbus emphasizes, that global competition should be assessed, and not only the European market.
- The company does not include the space launch sector in the negotiations - they only concern satellites and satellite services.
Source: https://spacenews.com/airbus-takes-another-300-million-euros-in-space-program-charges/