German defense company Rheinmetall and Finnish satellite manufacturer ICEYE have signed a contract to provide Ukraine with high-resolution satellite imagery under German funding.
“The agreement further increases the SAR data and other support Ukraine has been receiving from ICEYE during the war,” the press release stated, referring to the synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellite reconnaissance capabilities.
The SAR satellite generates high-resolution images enabling the identification of even the smallest objects on the earth’s surface, regardless of weather conditions or the time of day.
This capability provides advantages in surveillance, target acquisition, reconnaissance, and battlefield positioning for the military.
Under the contract, Kyiv will be supplemented with “further reconnaissance data obtained by other sensors” that will aid the armed forces in their decision-making and operational planning.
In addition, the war-torn country will receive dedicated satellite capacity and constellation access, meaning it can use the full capabilities of ICEYE’s entire fleet of satellites.
Support for Ukraine
The Finnish company has been helping Kyiv boost its space capabilities since it was first awarded a contract in 2022 to designate one satellite specifically for the Ukrainian government to gain access to SAR satellite imagery.
The agreement also allowed the armed forces to receive radar satellite imagery on critical locations from ICEYE’s constellation of SAR satellites.
In July 2024, ICEYE and Ukraine’s defense ministry inked a memorandum of cooperation to enhance the country’s space capabilities and ensure that the captured imagery would not be shared with adversaries.
Satellite for Military Use
An earlier partnership between Rheinmetall and ICEYE in June resulted in the utilization and integration of space-based data for military operations.
The two companies further intensified their partnership three months later, when the German arms manufacturer secured exclusive rights to distribute ICEYE SAR satellites to military and government users in several markets, including Germany and Hungary.
Meanwhile, the Finnish company’s capabilities were to be integrated into Rheinmetall’s next-generation battlefield systems.
