Memorandum of Understanding signed between Belgium and Luxembourg, the European Space Agency (ESA), Redu-operator RSS, and RSS shareholders QinetiQ and SES

Redu, Belgium – April 8, 2014 - Signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) ensuring the long-term and sustained development of the ESA ground facility in Redu, Belgium.

The MOU was signed on site today by Ministers Philippe Courard (Belgium) and Etienne Schneider (Luxembourg), Jean-Jacques Dordain, Director General of ESA, Eddy Maldague, Director General of Redu Space Services (RSS) and RSS Shareholders, Frank Preud’homme, Director General of QinetiQ Space N.V, as well as Martin Halliwell, CTO of SES, and Gerhard Betscheider, Managing Director of SES TechCom.

The agreement highlights the role of the ESA Centre as the ideal place to host space-based activities, services and applications with a high level of security for the benefits of ESA and its partners, as well as a centre of excellence able to welcome and cater for engineers, scientists and students. Acknowledging the strategic importance of the Redu Centre, the Parties to the MoU identify potential common areas of cooperation with a view to further developing the Redu Centre and to contributing together to its mid- to long-term sustainable development.

The European Space Agency (ESA) and RSS have also signed a Letter of Intent (LOI) on the extension of the contractual relationship between ESA and RSS for a further five years. RSS was appointed by the European Space Agency to perform the maintenance & operations of the Redu Centre in 2007 until 2017.