Hogan Lovells advises National Space Company on the acquisition of UP42 Satellite Geospatial Data Company from Airbus

Press releases | 19 December 2024

Led by Hamburg partner Dr Alexander Koch, together with Hogan Lovells’ leading Space and Satellite industry team, global law firm Hogan Lovells has advised National Space Company (NSC), Saudi Arabia’s leading commercial space services provider, on a definitive agreement with Airbus Defence and Space GmbH (Airbus) to acquire UP42 GmbH (UP42), a next-generation earth observation platform. The closing of the transaction is subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory clearances.

Launched by Airbus in 2019 in Berlin, UP42 is a pioneer in streamlining access to and exploitation of geospatial data via a cloud-based platform that provides customers access to over 80 satellite and aerial data sources. UP42 is expected to be integrated into National Space Group’s growing Geospatial division.

NSC, a subsidiary of the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund (PIF), was launched in May 2024 with the mission to become a global leader in the satellite and space sector, and to support Saudi Arabia’s growing demand for advanced EO & Geospatial solutions in line with Saudi Vision 2030.

A cross-border and cross-practice area team of Hogan Lovells advised National Space Group comprehensively on all aspects of the transaction, including the due diligence, the definitive transaction documents as well as regulatory clearances.

Hogan Lovells team for National Space Company

Dr Alexander Koch (Partner), Joy Baur, Gesa Unland-Miramov, Dr Daniel Schwiete (Senior Associates) (all Corporate/ M&A, Hamburg);

Randy Segal (Co-lead of Space and Satellite Practice, Partner Northern Virginia);

Turki AlSheikh (Partner), Mohammad AlShaikh (Associate) (both Infrastructure, Energy, Resources, and Projects, Riyadh);

Dr Stefan Schuppert (Partner, Munich), Dr Anna-Katharina Friese-Okoro (Partner, Hamburg), Theresa Mengler (Senior Associate, Dusseldorf), Fabian Flüchter (Associate, Hamburg) (all Intellectual Property);

André Lohde (Senior Associate, Real Estate, Hamburg);

Dr Silvia Tomassone (Counsel), Axel Huber (both Employment, Munich);

Christian Ritz (Partner, Antitrust/ Foreign Investment Screening, Munich), Dr Dennis Cukurov (Senior Associate, Munich), Julia Gingelmaier (Associate, Berlin) (both Antitrust), Stefan Kirwitzke (Senior Associate), Julius Gertz (both Foreign Investment Screening, Brussels);

Dr Ingmar Dörr (Partner, Tax, Munich).