ArianeGroup has awarded French aerospace manufacturer and logistics provider Daher a €60 million contract to handle all its logistics needs across the company’s facilities in France.
In late 2023, ArianeGroup successfully tested the M51.3 submarine-launched ballistic missile. In mid-2024, the company followed up with a successful inaugural flight of its Ariane 6 heavy-lift rocket. In the wake of these achievements, the company is moving quickly to ramp up production of both systems. A key element of this ramp-up is logistics.
According to a 16 December Daher press release, the company has managed ArianeGroup’s industrial logistics operations since 2018. However, details about this original agreement appear to be more complicated.
In late 2022, Daher announced plans to acquire the aerospace logistics company Transports Chabrillac. A press release dated 5 December 2022 described Transports Chabrillac as “satellite and launcher transport specialists” serving clients such as Airbus, Thales, and, most notably for this article, ArianeGroup. As a result, Daher seems to have inherited its partnership with the builders of the Ariane 6 rocket.
Under the new agreement, Daher will be responsible for logistics across all ArianeGroup facilities in France for the next five years. This includes a total of eight facilities located in Le Haillan, Les Mureaux, Toulouse, Vernon, Brest, Saint-Médard-en-Jalles Centre, Saint-Médard-en-Jalles Issac, and Vert-le-Petit.
“We are proud to continue supporting ArianeGroup in this new strategic phase,” said Didier Kayat, Daher’s Chairman and CEO. “As the Lead Logistics Provider, we are committed to addressing the challenges of Ariane 6’s ramp-up and contributing to ArianeGroup’s industrial excellence.”
ArianeGroup is currently working towards the second flight of its Ariane 6 rocket. All major elements of the rocket have been transported to French Guiana and are currently being integrated. The launch is expected to occur in the first quarter of 2024, with the rocket carrying the CSO-3 spy satellite for the French armed forces.
