City Of London
OneWeb Takes $230 Million Hit After Russia Seized Its Satellites
- London-based company is part owned by the British government
- Firm has agreed $3.4 billion deal with French rival Eutelsat
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British satellite startup OneWeb Ltd. took a $229 million writedown after Russia scuppered its launch plans and took 36 of its spacecraft hostage indefinitely earlier this year.
The impairment came after OneWeb canceled a launch in March at a Kremlin-controlled launchpad in Kazakhstan, after refusing Russia’s demand for Britain to sell its stake in the company. That postponed a series of planned launches, incurred an insurance cost, and left the satellites in Russia’s hands, OneWeb said in accounts published late Thursday.