Poland commits $745 million to EUs IRIS? constellation project
WARSAW, Poland - The Polish government has agreed to invest around $745 million in the development of the planned IRIS² multi-orbit satellite internet constellation with the European Union.
The money will go toward financing six medium Earth orbit (MEO) satellites and six low Earth orbit (LEO) satellites.
"Participation in this project marks a new chapter in Poland's security. Poland will finance the construction of several satellites, totaling 2.8 billion Polish złoty (656 million euros; $740 million)," the Polish Space Agency announced. "The satellites will ensure strategic communications security in the event of conflicts and crises."
An official ceremony took place July 21 in Warsaw, and was attended by European Commissioner for Defence and Space Andrius Kubilius and Marcin Kierwiński, Poland's Minister of the Interior and Administration.
"The European Union is developing some very important new space constellations, for example for secure satellite communications, the so-called IRIS². Poland is investing into that constellation a big amount of money which would give … Poland some very important additional services, and also that will create possibilities for the Polish space industry," Kubilius said in a social media post.
In a statement released by his ministry, Kierwiński said that Poland's participation in IRIS² could also provide multiple business opportunities for more than 400 companies active in the country's space sector.
"I'm persuaded that, through its participation in this European project, Poland will strengthen its position as a reliable partner, and the domestic space industry will gain new opportunities for growth," Kierwiński said.
IRIS² is designed to secure governmental satellite communications while facilitating the EU's efforts to ensure high-speed internet broadband to deal with connectivity dead zones. The designed satellite constellation is widely considered as the bloc's answer to SpaceX's Starlink.
Developed to extend connectivity to areas where terrestrial networks are unavailable or unreliable, IRIS² will be able to interconnect with terrestrial 5G and 6G networks, according to the statement. The EU says that IRIS² represents the bloc's first public-private partnership in satellite-based secure connectivity, designed to service the bloc's 27 member states.
Under the plan, the system will comprise some 292 satellites operating in different orbits. Of these, 18 are to be positioned in MEO, 264 in higher Low Earth Orbit (LEO-High), and 10 in lower Low Earth Orbit (LEO-Low), according to information published online by the European Commission's Directorate-General for Defence Industry and Space in February.
The development comes shortly after, earlier this month, Poland was selected to host the first ESA center to be located in an eastern flank member state. The new facility, which is to be opened in Warsaw, will be focused on civil security and resilience.
Alongside these efforts, Poland is boosting its spending on space-related programs. In the years 2026 to 2028, the country's financial contribution to ESA's budget will expand to some 731 million euros. Poland's authorities are also planning to launch a new state-run fund worth more than 500 million zloty that will invest in prospective space companies, local officials have announced.
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