Political infighting is undermining the European Union鈥檚 biggest ever joint technology programme: the Galileo satellite navigation network.
By 2011, Galileo was to have ended reliance on America鈥檚 Global Positioning System system, a network that can be switched off at the whim of the Pentagon. But divisive power struggles among the eight European companies that comprise the industrial consortium chosen by the EU to run Galileo are putting the programme鈥檚 future in doubt.
Galileo鈥檚 30 satellites are to be launched into mid-Earth orbits at a cost of around 聙3.2 billion, with one third of that coming from the EU, and the rest coming from the consortium, which hopes to recoup its investment by selling location-based technology and services.
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By the end of 2006, the consortium was to have formed a single Galileo operating company and have appointed an independent chief executive so the project has a 鈥渃lear decision making structure鈥� says Paul Verhoef, Galileo programme manager at the European Commission in Brussels, Belgium.
However, no company has been formed, and the consortium remains rudderless 鈥� and unable to place orders for Galileo鈥檚 critical satellites.
National interests
鈥淭his is posing major problems. As time schedules slip, costs go up,鈥� says Verhoef. 鈥淎nd Galileo is now at risk of running to unacceptable schedules.鈥� German technology analyst firm Bitkom reckons Galileo will not be up and running until 2014 or later 鈥� which represents a delay of at least three years from the original plan.
鈥淭he EU is now not talking to the consortium until it sorts itself out and comes back as a single company,鈥� says Richard Peckham of EADS Astrium in Portsmouth, UK. 鈥淭he EU can鈥檛 continue to negotiate with eight individual companies.鈥�
National interests are one of the roots of the debilitating stasis. While each consortium member鈥檚 nation has secured some aspects of Galileo鈥檚 operations on its own territory, arguments continue.
鈥極utrageous demands鈥�
鈥淭he Spanish firms are the current block,鈥� says one source close to the consortium鈥檚 negotiations. 鈥淭hey are making outrageous demands over guaranteed workshare arrangements. But Spain has already secured a completely unnecessary control centre and people aren鈥檛 having any more.鈥�
The multinational arguments strike a chord with observers familiar with some of the problems experienced by Airbus Industrie, the troubled pan-European plane maker, which has been riven with UK, French, German and Spanish rivalries. 鈥淕alileo is now being compared with the Airbus situation. Unfortunately that analysis is correct,鈥� says Verhoef.
Continued delays in ordering the satellites are having an expensive knock-on effect, too. Last week, Galileo鈥檚 technology developer, the European Space Agency, was forced to order Giove-A2, a 聙30 million Galileo signal testing satellite. It had not planned for the satellite 鈥� and only ordered it so it could place it in orbit and maintain rights to Galileo鈥檚 frequency allocations (see Back-up satellite to secure Galileo navigation system).
Reassign frequencies
When the current orbiting test craft Giove-A stops broadcasting Galileo signals in mid-2008 when its fuel runs out, the International Telecommunications Union can reassign the frequencies to others unless another craft replaces it.
Originally, Galileo鈥檚 first four operational satellites (which have been ordered) were to have been in orbit by 2006 鈥� but they have been pushed back to 2009 or beyond, not soon enough to maintain the frequencies. Another test craft, Giove-B, has suffered repeated onboard computer problems and is still grounded. If that craft can eventually launch, however, the newly ordered Giove-A2 satellite, which is funded by taxpayers, may remain grounded after all.
鈥淲e need Giove-A2 because the situation has evolved. We don鈥檛 have the consortium鈥檚 contract signed and we don鈥檛 know who will take care of the operational Galileo satellites,鈥� says ESA spokesman Dominique Detain.
The EU, as major bankroller of the project, has had enough. Wolfgang Tiefensee, president of the EU鈥檚 Council of Transport Ministers under the current German presidency, is demanding to know when the consortium plans to incorporate a company, appoint a CEO and place firm orders for the Galileo satellite fleet.
鈥淭he consortium must fulfil the conditions and obligations it agreed to in 2005,鈥� says a spokesman for Tiefensee鈥檚 office. 鈥淲e expect substantial progress by June.鈥�
Competition from China
Tiefensee is expected to reveal the industry鈥檚 response at a meeting of European Transport Ministers on 22 March. 鈥淲e鈥檒l see in the next couple of weeks how this pans out,鈥� says Verhoef.
But even if the consortium comes good, doubts remain over Galileo鈥檚 commercial viability. Russia is improving its global satnav fleet and will have 18 spacecraft in orbit by the end of the year. And China has said that it鈥檚 30-satellite Beidou satnav network, originally intended for its military, will be an open system usable by anyone.
Fears that China may be planning to go its own way on a satnav network 鈥� despite putting some seed money into Galileo 鈥� were heightened last week when its delegation failed to turn up at a key all-nations satellite positioning conference in Munich, Germany.
The multinational consortium that the EU appointed to run Galileo in December 2005 comprises TeleOp (Germany), EADS Astrium (France/Germany), Inmarsat (UK), Thales (France), Aena (Spain), Finmeccanica (Italy), Hispasat (Spain) and Alcatel-Lucent (France).
