Spain’s Ministry of Defence has signed an agreement with the European Union’s Satellite Centre (SatCen) to provide access to the country’s national Earth observation satellite system.
SatCen was founded in 1992 and was incorporated as an EU agency in January 2002. The agency supports the EU’s decision-making in the field of Common Foreign and Security Policy and, in particular, Common Security and Defence Policy.
In September 2023, Germany, Spain, France, Italy, and Luxembourg signed a joint framework agreement committing to provide SatCen with imagery from their respective national Earth observation assets. On 16 January, Spain became the first of the five countries to follow through on that commitment.
“The access to this system will significantly enhance the Centre’s ability to support the EU’s ambitions in security and defence and contribute to further improving the situational awareness of the EU and its Member States,” said SatCen Director, Ambassador Sorin Ducaru. “This agreement also demonstrates Spain’s leadership in the field of EO and its clear commitment to the wider European security and defence community.”
SatCen representatives are in the process of planning discussions with the other four member states that have committed to the agreement. It did not, however, provide a projected date when it expects all parties to have officially signed onto the programme.
The primary asset of Spain’s national Earth observation satellite system is the Paz synthetic aperture radar satellite, which was launched aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 in February 2018. While the satellite is operated by Hisdesat, a large portion of the data collected by the satellite is reserved for the country’s Ministry of Defence, which contributed €135 million towards the satellite’s €160 price tag.
