Australia has canceled a multi-billion dollar military satellite project with Lockheed Martin. A Defense Department statement on Monday said the military would instead focus on a multi-orbit system.
Lockheed Martin Australia was announced last year as the preferred bidder for the Geostationary Earth Orbit (GEO) satellite communications system. The project was intended to deliver Australia’s first government-controlled satellite communications system across the Indo-Pacific Ocean.
The Lockheed Martin single-orbit satellite project has been canceled, the Defense Department said in a statement on Monday.
“Given the acceleration of space technologies and evolving threats in space since the project’s inception, the Department of Defense has assessed that a GEO-based single-orbit satellite communications system would not meet strategic priorities,” the statement said.
Australia will instead prioritize a multi-orbit system to increase the resilience of Australia’s defense forces.
In a radio interview with the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said that while Australia’s defense budget was increasing, his government was prioritizing purchases.
When the Lockheed Martin project was announced last year, authorities spoke of a “multi-billion-dollar” deal, but the Defense Department’s statement on Monday did not provide a specific value for the canceled project.
However, the Defense Ministry said it will continue to allocate A$9-12 billion ($13.87 billion) for space capabilities.
($1 = 1.5135 Australian dollars)
