What 2025 GEO satellite orders say about the industry

Caleb Henry
20 hours ago
2 min read

Feb. 9, 2026 by Chris Quilty and Caleb Henry

SpaceX received ~$216M in milestone payments in 2025 under its Starship HLS contract. Roughly $3B of a $4.5B potential award has been obligated to date, with ~$2.7B disbursed, reflecting a contract front-loaded with early- and mid-phase milestones.

Following a lull in 2024, satcom operators ordered 11 GEO satellites in 2025 – the industry’s best total since 2016. Orders were about equally split between traditional large GEOs and increasingly popular Small GEO platforms. Only three orders were directed at growth-oriented applications, with the balance representing replacement satellites, government focused initiatives, and a first-of-its-kind satellite leasing order for two satellites.

Thales Alenia Space led traditional manufacturers with three orders for the company’s workhorse SpaceBus 4000, while Maxar (now Lanteris) inked two orders for the company’s 1300-Series satellite. Airbus received one order for its OneSat software-defined satellite – only the second order since 2021 – as the still unproven product line awaits its first launch in 2027.

In the Small GEO category, newcomer AscendArc was the surprise leader, winning its first satellite order in September from Kt Sat, followed by a two-satellite order from SLI, a space asset leasing company, in December. Astranis and Swissto12, which together have been awarded 80% of Small GEOs ordered since 2020, each picked up one satellite order.

Small GEOs, which first appeared in 2018, have swept up 20 of 47 GEO satellite orders since 2020 due to their relatively low cost and focused capacity, making them ideal for new operators (Taiwan’s Chunghwa Telecom), new applications (Astrum Mobile’s first-of-kind Satellite-to-Device platform), or targeted market expansion (Kt sat’s consumer broadband push).

Notably, Oman’s Space Communication Technologies (SCT) – a first-time satellite buyer – placed a split order for a software-defined Airbus OneSat in November 2025, followed by a Small GEO from Astranis in January 2026. Time will tell which platform delivers the best economic return and staying power in the face of growing LEO competition.