Mangata raises $100m for Scottish satellites

Mangata Networks has raised $100 million (€95.4m) from (mostly) Scottish investors to fund the development of a satellite manufacturing plant at Prestwick, Scotland.

Mangata Networks has raised $100 million (€95.4m) from (mostly) Scottish investors to fund the development of a satellite manufacturing plant at Prestwick, Scotland.

Mangata, headed up by Brian Holz, says its new facility will combine R&D, engineering, manufacturing and operations at the Scottish site. In January it raised $33 million from a group of investors including Korea’s KT Sat and Singapore-based Temasek Holdings.

Over the coming few years, up to 575 new jobs will be created. The majority of the new jobs will be highly paid, highly skilled technical engineering positions in product development, designing and manufacturing satellites, and operating the system end-to-end. Construction will begin in early 2023 with manufacturing and operations teams set to move in from late 2024.

Mangata is building a global satellite telecommunications network with sustainable, cutting-edge technology. It is designed to reach and connect any community, anywhere on Earth, removing barriers and inequalities for the up to four billion people without adequate internet access. It will support the creation of local content and enable sharing on a global basis.

Deputy First Minister of Scotland, John Swinney said: “The fact that Mangata has chosen to base its new satellite manufacturing facility in Ayrshire is a huge boost for the region, for the space and manufacturing sectors, and for Scotland as a whole. As well as the substantial, high-skilled job opportunities, this will open up new pathways for the satellite manufacturing supply chain and help position Scotland as a leading centre for space and manufacturing innovation – while supporting the aims of our space strategy.”

Holz added: “Scotland, Ayrshire, the local regions, and the UK have expressed a lot of confidence in our system and mission. We are very grateful to be able to locate Mangata’s core product development, satellite manufacturing, and network operations teams in a state-of-the-art facility in Prestwick. We will be using this facility to bring our satellite connectivity and intelligent Edge compute solutions to enterprises globally. Today, our customer base has already committed to over 1.5 Tbps pre-launch, nearing full capacity of our initial 32 satellites. As the business grows, Mangata’s network can scale to over 750 satellites. This factory will be a key enabler, allowing us to scale and deliver cost-effective space technology into markets that really need it.”

The funding for Mangata comprises £54.5 million from Scottish Enterprise and £29.2 million from the Ayrshire Growth Deal, via South Ayrshire Council, made available to Mangata on commercial terms and expected to be repaid by Mangata over the next 15 years.

Mangata Networks was founded in February of 2020 and initially financed by MetaVC Partners. Its other investors include Playground Global, Temasek, ktsat, Promus Ventures and Scottish Enterprise.

Mangata is a Phoenix-based organization with operations in Denver, Seattle, London, Prestwick, Singapore, and Seoul.

Its own production ambitions are to build around 24 satellites every three months. It has an ITU obligation to launch its first satellites by April 2027.