Bremen, April 13, 2011 - the prime contractor Astrium Services and OHB-System AG, a subsidiary of OHB Technology AG (Prime Standard, ISIN: DE0005936124), today signed an authorization to proceed (ATP) for the development and construction of a satellite for the European Data Relay System (EDRS). Initiated and funded by the European Space Agency ESA as ARTES-7, this program is to define a new standard in space-based communications. Based on the Small GEO platform developed by OHB-System, the satellite is to go into operation in 2016.

The first contract entails development work of an initial volume of around EUR 7.4 million. The total volume for OHB-System will come to around EUR 150 million.

With the launch of the program by ESA, work on setting up a European data relay satellite system will be commenced, resulting in a constellation of geostationary satellites, which will receive data from low-orbit satellites and relay it back to the earth.

The decision to go ahead with EDRS under German lead management was made at the ESA council of ministers conference in Den Haag in 2008. It is now being implemented under the industrial leadership of Germany with the support of the German Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology (BMWi) and the German Aerospace Center (DLR).