Maxar Technologies, a global provider of space-based technology, announced today it will be selling its subsidiary MDA to a consortium of financial sponsors, including Northern Private Capital, for CAD$1 billion ($765 million US).
MDA is a Canadian-based company that has been developing surveillance and intelligence solutions, defense and maritime systems, radar geospatial imagery, space robotics, satellite antennas and communication subsystems for more than 40 years. Earlier this year, the company was selected to design navigation antennas for an Airbus satellite and a forest fire monitoring satellite.
This recent transaction encompasses all of the company’s Canadian business, including its ground stations, radar satellites and robotics components, representing approximately 1,900 employees. Following the completion of the transaction, MDA will function as a stand-alone company within NPC’s portfolio, retaining its name. However, it will continue to supply Colorado-based Maxar with certain components and subsystems. The companies also say they expect to sell each other’s complementary satellite data.
Both Dan Jablonsky, Maxar’s CEO, and Biggs Porter, Maxar’s CFO, said in statements that the sale of MDA will help reduce the company’s debt and leverage its ratio. Maxar also plans to use the proceeds to improve its capital structure to prioritize investments and grow its Earth Intelligence and Space Infrastructure areas.
