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EADS aerospace giant acquires Vizada
European aerospace giant EADS on Aug. 1 said it is purchasing Vizada of France, the second-largest distributor of Inmarsat mobile satellite services, in a transaction valued at $960 million that gives EADS’s Astrium Services division a major stake in L- and Ka-band mobile satellite systems alongside its established X-band capacity business for military users.
Industry officials have been saying for several months that private-equity investor Apax France was looking to cash out of its majority stake in Vizada. Vizada’s chief executive, Bruno Ducharme, resigned in mid-July and was replaced by Rafi Kouyoumdjian. Apax purchased Vizada in late 2006.
Paris-based Vizada is second only to Stratos Global of Bethesda, Md., in the revenue it generates from L-band mobile satellite services provided by London-based Inmarsat’s fleet of satellites.
Vizada, which also distributes services from Iridium Communications and other mobile satellite operators, is expected to report $660 million in revenue for 2011, EADS said in its Aug. 1 statement. Vizada’s EBITDA, or earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, is expected to be $95 million in 2011, or 14.4 percent of revenue.
