18th February 2008 - Astrium today announced that it has entered into a joint-venture with the Cartographic Institute of Catalonia (ICC), the Catalan official mapping agency, and Hisdesat, a space services provider, to create Infoterra Servicios de Geoinformación SA (Infoterra SGSA).
Infoterra SGSA will form part of the Infoterra Group, a leading provider of geo-information products and services based on Earth observation data. The new company will expand an already strong European organisation present in France, Germany, the United Kingdom and Hungary.
The company will be the exclusive distributor of TerraSAR-X high resolution radar data for the Spanish market. Infoterra SGSA will also develop GMES (Global Monitoring for Environment and Security) services, applications for agri-environment and defence & security, and support international mapping projects. Finally, through access to the resources and assets of its three shareholders, Infoterra SGSA will develop datasets from airborne acquisition, as well as radar and optical satellite imagery to deliver a comprehensive range of geospatial products.
"Being able to call on expertise from all Infoterra entities, ICC and Hisdesat, Infoterra SGSA will offer its customers a portfolio ranging from data acquisition & processing to sophisticated geo-information services. We are all very excited about this new venture and convinced this will contribute to a positive development of the Spanish Earth observation market," said Marc Tondriaux, CEO of Infoterra Group and Chairman of Infoterra SGSA.
"With the growing need for geospatial solutions, this venture supports our strategy of strengthening the Infoterra Group's position as a key player in the Earth observation business," continued Marc Tondriaux.
Astrium holds 60% of the company, while ICC and Hisdesat equally hold 20% of the shares. The Board of Directors has appointed Mr Joan Romeu as the General Manager. Mr Joan Romeu, previously International Sales Manager at ICC, brings more than 20 years experience in the field of mapping and geo-information.
The company, which has offices in Madrid and Barcelona, expects early commercial successes in 2008 and will work towards becoming one of the key players in geo-information in Spain within the next 5 years.
www.infoterra.es
www.infoterra-global.com
About Infoterra Group
Infoterra Group is a leading provider of geo-information products and services for managing the development, environment and security of our changing world. With companies in France, Germany, the United Kingdom and Hungary, its global customers include international companies, national, regional and local governments and authorities throughout Europe, and organisations such as the European Commission (EC) and the European Space Agency (ESA).
Infoterra operates across a comprehensive range of markets - communications, environment, security, agriculture, defence, oil & gas exploration and many more. Furthermore, Infoterra holds the exclusive commercial exploitation rights for the German radar satellite TerraSAR-X, and plays a leading role in geo-information services within the European GMES initiative of the EC and ESA.
About Astrium Services
Astrium Services, a wholly owned subsidiary of EADS Astrium, offers a unique 'one-stop-shop' in the satellite services market, with unrivalled capability and expertise in secure communications, Earth observation services and navigation services. The European provider of milsatcom services, including the pioneering Skynet 5 service, and a world-leading supplier of geo-information products and services, Astrium Services meets its customer' requirements with innovative and highly competitive end-to-end solutions.
About Cartographic Institute of Catalonia (ICC)
ICC is the official mapping agency of Catalonia. Its activities are related with land studies from different approaches such as the production of different map series, research and information distribution and diffusion. In addition, ICC can carry out projects wherever is requested by other public or private entities. ICC's main activities are: topographic maps, data acquisition, photogrammetry, remote sensing, geographic information systems, geodetics and positioning systems, thematic mapping and atlases, territorial boundary marking, Catalonia map library, research programs, cartographic publications, etc.
About Hisdesat
Hisdesat is a space services provider company meeting the needs of government users in satellite communications and earth observation fields. Its main purpose is to acquire, operate and commercialize governmental satellite systems, mostly for communications in X and military Ka bands. HISDESAT owns and operates the satellite SPAINSAT and joint together with Loral Space and Communication the satellite Xtar-Eur. HISDESAT is the military satellite communication operator for the Spanish Ministry of Defence and others European and NATO countries.
Media Contacts
Infoterra
Nathalie Pisot (Infoterra FR) Tel: +33 (0) 4 97 23 23 46
Sarah Haslam (Infoterra UK) Tel: +44 (0)116 273 2300
Mareike Doepke (Infoterra GER) Tel: +49 (0)7545 8 3924
Astrium
Rémi Roland (Astrium FR) Tel: +33 (0) 1 77 75 80 37
Jeremy Close (Astrium UK) Tel: +44 (0)1 438 77 3872
Mathias Pikelj (Astrium GER) Tel: +49 (0) 7545 8 91 23
Francisco Lechon (Astrium ESP) Tel: +34 (0) 91586 3741
