Sateliot, the first satellite telecommunications operator providing IoT connectivity, will launch its second nanosatellite in Q1 2023 as a Falcon9 payload. Elon Musk’s company, SpaceX, has been elected by Sateliot to bring this first stage of its 5G nanosatellite constellation from Cape Canaveral, FL, to a low-Earth orbit.
This new nanosatellite differs from the first, launched in March 2021, as it has the availability to provide 5G IoT-NB standard connectivity. With this advancement, Sateliot will commence commercial tests, paving the way for massive IoT adoption.
The nanosatellite is a state-of-the-art technological ensemble, made by a stack of six 10x10cms-sized cubes and the size of a microwave oven. It weighs 12 kg and will be set in a 550 km low-Earth orbit, in contraposition of the large geostationary sets that are orbiting 36,000km from Earth.
Following its launch, Sateliot, along with 500 companies from its Early Adopter Program, will begin testing it. This gives the early adopters a competitive advantage and sets them up as pioneers in the market. Sateliot has reached a €1B portfolio, thanks to pre-commercial agreements with these companies.
Convertible Note and the upcoming 100 Million Euro funding
With the aim to support this growth, Sateliot has recently issued a €10M convertible note to finance the unveiling of its commercial constellation of low-earth orbit satellites.
This operation will be followed by the opening of a Series B funding round with the aim to raise €100M, one of the largest 5G satellite investments in the European Union. With this, Sateliot expects to reach €1B and €370M EBITDA by 2026.
Both operations are happening after Sateliot successfully closed its Series A with €10M in funding, where investment funds and European investors joined in a majority way. IBEX 35 companies, like Indra and Cellnex, got involved as industrial partners with 10.5% and 3.5% participations, respectively. Sepides also entered into Sateliot shareholding with 4.69% of its capital.
Jaume Sanpera, Sateliot Founder and CEO, commented: “The launch of this satellite, along with the rest of our constellation that is programmed for launch by 2023, marks the next stage of Sateliot and gives both strength and safety to our shareholders. We are now in a position to start invoicing and showing the profitability of our commitment.”