Europe I: The EU and NATO Layer
What are the EU and NATO building in defence space?
Chapter summary
IRIS² grew to 348 satellites at ~€15.6B; SAFE lends €150B; NATO's APSS reached IOC and eight allies launched HALO.
Key takeaways
- 1
The EU pays for dual-use infrastructure and now lends for national defence procurement.
- 2
NATO buys and pools space services rather than owning satellites.
- 3
SAFE's 35% cap on non-European content keeps most demand in European industry.
Key figures in this chapter
- 348
- satellites, incl. a 66-satellite defence and security layer
- €15.6B
- estimated cost, up from ~€10.5B
- 2029
- first launches
- ~€45M
- per satellite incl. ground and operations (Setcoin calculation)
Source: European Commission; SpaceRISE; trade press (Aug 2026)
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