Maxar Technologies Believes WorldView-4 Satellite Lost

   By Colin Kellaher

Maxar Technologies Inc. (MAXR) on Monday said it believes it has lost its WorldView-4 imaging satellite after the unit experienced a failure in its control moment gyros, preventing it from collecting imagery.

Maxar said efforts by the company and its suppliers to restore functionality have been unsuccessful, and the company said it believes the satellite will likely not be recoverable and will no longer produce usable imagery.

The satellite was built by Lockheed Martin Corp. (LMT), and the control moment gyros were provided by Honeywell International Inc. (HON), Maxar said.

The company said the satellite has a net book value of about $155 million, which it will write off in the fourth quarter of 2018 if the unit isn't recoverable. Maxar said it will seek full recovery for the loss of the WorldView-4 satellite, which is insured for $183 million.

Maxar said the satellite, which was launched in November 2016, generated about $85 million in revenue last year. The company said it is assessing the use of its other satellites and outside resources to replace imagery collected by the WorldView-4, adding that it believes it can offset $10 million to $15 million of the lost annual revenue.

Write to Colin Kellaher at colin.kellaher@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

January 07, 2019 08:58 ET (13:58 GMT)

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