Julian Moxon/PARIS
Despite record orders, Arianespace lost money in 2000 for the first time in its 20-year history, due to "major investment costs" on the Ariane 5 launcher and increased competition in the launcher market.
The company, which is jointly owned by industry and various national space agencies, is demanding that European governments provide "equivalent" support for launch facilities as in the USA.
Arianespace president, Jean-Marie Luton says the company expects to show a loss of "around €200 million [$190 million]" when figures are released in two or three months time.
He blamed the poor performance on the price war between the USA and Europe and "very high" investment costs on the new Ariane 5 launcher and its development. Luton says that Arianespace wants to amortise Ariane 5 development costs early in the programme "so that we can concentrate on further market development".
Luton forecasts a return to breakeven in 2001, with profitability being restored next year. While pointing to the operational success of Ariane 5 during the year, with five consecutive successful launches, he admitted that costs, including heavy investment in the Kourou, French Guiana, launch centre, amounted to "more than we envisaged".
The cost of failure of the first Ariane 5 in 1996 had a knock-on effect on Arianespace development finances and further costs are being incurred as the company increases Ariane 5 launch rates from five to eight per year by 2004.
The Arianespace boss also hit out at the USA, complaining that Washington provides extensive support to domestic launcher companies through its continued bankrolling of launch facilities. He claims this leaves companies such as Boeing and Lockheed Martin having to pay just 10% of the associated costs, whereas Arianespace has to contribute around 50%.
Luton says European governments contribute just €600 million support a year compared with $3 billion in the USA. "We ask only that Europe has the courage to support us in an equivalent manner", he says.
Four contracts signed at the end of 2000 (DirecTV-4S, Insat 3A and 3E and Amos 2) took Arianespace orders for the year to a total of 15 telecommunications and one earth observation satellite, plus nine Automatic Transfer Vehicles for the International Space Station.
The launch order backlog for the company, which claims 50% of the worldwide launcher market, now stands at 49 satellites worth €4.45 billion.
The battle to reduce costs and improve efficiency has, says Luton, been helped "enormously" by the consolidation of the European aerospace industry and by the recent move by Snecma to merge France's rocket engine and booster businesses.
Source: Flight International
