ICEYE, the Finnish synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellite operator, and Nokia announced a partnership on October 1 to develop secure, sovereign low Earth orbit (LEO) broadband satellite communications systems for governments. The companies said the first communications satellites are expected to launch in 2028.
The jointly developed systems are aimed at defense, border security, emergency services and disaster response missions, and are designed to give nations ownership and control of the satellites, ground segment and terminals rather than relying on a foreign commercial operator. ICEYE already supplies sovereign Earth observation satellite systems to governments, and the Nokia partnership extends that same ownership model to satellite communications. ICEYE will contribute spacecraft and constellation operations, while Nokia brings secure networking technologies and its defense portfolio.
"Nations must be able to fully own and control their communications, without dependency on a foreign commercial operator's terms of service," said Rafal Modrzewski, CEO and co-founder of ICEYE. "We delivered Poland its own radar satellite system in under a year. Partnering with Nokia lets us move at a similar speed for satellite communications, on the timelines nations need."
Nokia President and CEO Justin Hotard said the companies will deliver a satellite communications capability "complementing existing terrestrial networks, and giving nations the situational awareness, connectivity, and control they need to operate with confidence in contested environments across all domains."
The announcement was made in Helsinki, Finland, ahead of a session featuring Modrzewski and Hotard at the Helsinki Security Forum on October 2.