The companies announced the partnership on September 9 at the International Space Summit in Paris. They plan to combine Ororatech’s sensor technology and analytics platform with Eutelsat’s infrastructure in low Earth orbit (LEO). The goal is to establish a European infrastructure capable of collecting thermal data globally at higher frequencies and delivering it with lower latency.
Hitching a Ride Instead of Funding Every Satellite Themselves
For Ororatech, the cooperation opens up an additional pathway to expand its sensor network: the instruments are set to fly as hosted payloads on Eutelsat satellites. As a result, the Munich-based company does not have to fund and launch a dedicated satellite for every sensor. At the same time, distributing the sensors across multiple platforms could increase the network’s resilience.
Martin Langer, CEO of Ororatech, says:
“This partnership is about moving from satellites to infrastructure. Eutelsat has built a unique European LEO infrastructure, while Ororatech has developed the world’s leading operational capabilities for thermal data acquisition and analytics. By bringing both together, we are establishing a viable path toward continuous, low-latency thermal data collection and analysis on a global scale – developed in Europe and available to European government customers.”
Additional sensors are intended to shorten the intervals between observations of the same area. This would allow fires to be detected more quickly.
Detecting Forest Fires Earlier, Supporting Emergency Services
With this partnership, Eutelsat is opening up another area of application for its satellites. In addition to communications, they are also set to contribute to satellite-based fire detection in the future.
Jean-François Fallacher, CEO of Eutelsat, explains:
“The severe forest fires that France, Germany, and other parts of Europe have experienced this summer highlight the growing threat to the population and the environment. We are pleased to collaborate with Ororatech to bring its detection technology aboard our future satellites and help detect fires earlier. This partnership will also expand the use of our LEO satellites to an important new field and complement the role our communication links can play in supporting first responders on the ground.”
Thermal Data for Multiple Applications
The planned infrastructure is intended to be used beyond wildfire monitoring. According to the companies, the continuously collected thermal data could also support the monitoring of critical infrastructure, maritime surveillance, as well as environmental and security applications. An additional sensor could thus serve multiple customers and regions.
The cooperation combines Munich sensor technology with French satellite infrastructure. A significant part of Ororatech’s planned expansion will thereby be anchored in European infrastructure. The companies aim to demonstrate how additional Earth observation capabilities can be built through industrial collaboration.
Ororatech was founded in 2018 and is headquartered in Munich. The company uses data from its own and publicly available satellite systems for its wildfire detection and management platform. According to company information, it employs more than 180 people.
