Senior Nigerian official: Mega deal taking shape with IAI in the satellite field

The CEO of NIGCOMSAT revealed on LinkedIn that Nigeria has approved the acquisition of two advanced communication satellites from Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) and Thales, with an estimated total value of around $2 billion. The Israeli satellite, NigComSat-2A, is slated for launch in 2028 and will replace an existing satellite. The deal could bolster the standing of IAI's communication satellite division.

The CEO of the Nigerian satellite company NIGCOMSAT, Jane Egerton-Idem, revealed in a LinkedIn post that Nigeria has approved the purchase of two advanced communication satellites from Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) and the Italian-French group Thales. The combined value of the two deals is estimated at around $2 billion. The approval was granted by Nigeria's Federal Executive Council, as part of its investment in the country's digital sovereignty. IAI will produce the NigComSat-2A satellite, scheduled for launch in 2028, which will replace the current NigComSat-1R satellite nearing the end of its life. Thales will supply the NigComSat-2B satellite for launch in 2029. The CEO described the approval as a milestone and noted that the planned deployment will increase broadband connectivity and support vital sectors of the Nigerian economy. IAI declined to comment. The deal could significantly improve the certainty for IAI's management, CEO Guy Barlev and Chairman Boaz Levy, regarding the status of the company's communication satellite division, following the crisis that hit the field in recent years, including the explosion of the Amos 6 satellite and the loss of orders. Concurrently, IAI is advancing negotiations with Azerbaijan for a possible deal worth nearly $1 billion. The deal is also unusual geographically: Israeli defense exports to sub-Saharan Africa totaled only about $400 million in 2025, roughly 2% of total defense exports.