Corporate | 7 September 2004 13:54

OHB TECHNOLOGY AG JOINS INAVSAT CONSORTIUM AS KEY CORE PARTNER

Corporate-news announcement sent by DGAP. The sender is solely responsible for the contents of this announcement. ——————————————————————————– OHB TECHNOLOGY AG JOINS INAVSAT CONSORTIUM AS KEY CORE PARTNER – Consortium delivered joint bid Bremen, September 07, 2004. OHB Technology AG of Bremen, Germany announced today that it has joined as key core partner the iNavSat consortium initially formed by Inmarsat Ventures Ltd, EADS Space and the Thales Group. The iNavSat consortium was chosen in February as one of the three final bidders and has recently delivered its offer to the Galileo Joint Undertaking (GJU) to become the Galileo concessionaire, deploying the Galileo satellite constellation and operator of all subsequent services. The preferred bidder is expected to be announced in December 2004, followed by negotiations with the Galileo Joint Undertaking in 2005. The financial close of the concession contract is anticipated by December 2005. The OHB Group companies specializing in telematics, namely Teledata GmbH, megatel GmbH and Timtec Teldatrans GmbH as well as the Milan-based subsidiary Telematic Solutions SpA in particular are participating in the iNavSat consortium. Marco Fuchs, the CEO of OHB Technology said: “We have agreed to participate in the iNavSat consortium as we believe that this consortium is by far the most experienced grouping to run such an ambitious program as Galileo”. “Bringing the combined telematics market and technology know-how of the OHB Technology Group, to which Telematic Solutions belongs, into the consortium will strongly support the customer focus of the INAVSAT consortium and the development of the Italian market,” said Lanfranco Zucconi, Managing Director of Telematic Solutions. “We are delighted that such potent companies in the space and telematics domain from Italy and Germany have decided to join forces within the existing INAVSAT partnership”, said Martin Ripple, Director Galileo Concession EADS. “This will definitely strengthen our capabilities in the various navigation-related sectors and shows that midcorp sector companies also have a strong voice in our consortium”. Galileo is a joint project of the European Union and the European Space Agency ESA to develop a new advanced satellite navigation system, superior to existing satellite navigation systems. The winning concessionaire is expected to take the lead in arranging private financing for the deployment and operational phases of Galileo, and would ultimately become the Galileo operating company. The Galileo program is a major step forward for Europe. It is the first major European-level infrastructure procurement program with a global dimension. It is also the first major public/private partnership (PPP) at a multinational level. It will bring numerous benefits to Europe, notably the opportunity to demonstrate how government and industry can cooperate to achieve both market and policy success. The founding members, Inmarsat Ventures Ltd, EADS Space, Thales Group and the new key core partner OHB Technology AG are the respective European market leaders in the fields of mobile satellite communications, navigation-based products and services and aerospace. Together they bring an unmatched array of experience and competencies to the Galileo Program. By joining forces in the consortium they are expressing their combined desire to push forward and develop the opportunity represented by Galileo. Contacts: Jochen Harms Strategic Marketing Tel: +49 421 2020-9849 Fax : +49 421 2020-700 Email: harms@ohb-technology.de http://www.ohb-technology.de end of message, (c)DGAP 07.09.2004 ——————————————————————————– WKN: 593612; ISIN: DE0005936124; Index: Listed: Geregelter Markt in Frankfurt (Prime Standard); Freiverkehr in Berlin- Bremen, Düsseldorf, Hamburg, Hannover und Stuttgart 071354 Sep 04