Filtronic secures $62.5m SpaceX order

(Sharecast News) - RF solutions business Filtronic said on Tuesday that it has secured a $62.5m order with Elon Musk's SpaceX for its next-generation, proprietary gallium nitride E-band product, its largest single order to date. Filtronic said the first production units from the contract would ship in FY27 and were expected to deliver "material revenues" in both FY27 and FY28. In recognition of SpaceX placing the "substantial order", warrants relating to the pair's original strategic partnership agreement have been extended to include E Band GaN alongside other bands in development. The vesting criteria were also amended to double the volume of products required for full vesting and now vests on product delivery rather than on the placement of the purchase order.

The AIM-listed firm stated the contract was the first GaN product from Filtronic's next-generation product lines, delivering more than double the output power of its existing gallium arsenide product line.

Filtronic added that the successful development of its GaN solution reflected its "technical leadership and ability to overcome complex design and manufacturing challenges" associated with high-power mmWave systems, including advanced packaging and thermal management.

Chief executive Nat Edington said: "We are extremely proud to announce this landmark contract, which not only sets a new commercial record for Filtronic, but also reflect the success of our partnership with world-leading satellite company SpaceX, supporting the Starlink constellation. GaN represents a transformative opportunity for the ground segment of LEO communications, and this contract is further testament to the world-class engineering talent of both teams working together."

As of 0840 BST, Filtronic shares had shot up 8.81% to 146.90p.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com