Mynaric publishes key performance indicators for 2022

Those who are ahead of their time should have staying power. This is especially true for Mynaric, whose communication terminals are designed to speed up data transmission. The company was spun off from the German Aerospace Center (DLR) in 2009, but it is only now, almost a decade and a half later, that the order books are filling up. In the past year, more and more deals have been signed, and the technology is slowly but surely finding its way into the market. This is also reflected in the performance indicators that Mynaric has now presented. CEO Bulent Altan is pleased with them.

Mynaric hat das Jahr 2022 sehr gut abgeschlossen, da das Team die Ziele für den Auftragsbestand sehr gut erreicht hat und gleichzeitig die ersten Terminals an unsere Kunden geliefert und wichtige Meilensteine erreicht hat.

Bulent Altan, CEO Mynaric

The company plans to produce and deliver significant quantities of optical communication terminals in 2023. This applies to both existing and new customers. But who ultimately orders the terminals often remains unclear; specific names are not always given. As of December 31, 2022, the backlog was reported to be 256 units, compared to a forecast of 250 units. Revenue from customer contracts was 18.3 million euros, with a forecast of more than 20 million euros. An amount of 11 million Euros to be invoiced in December 2022 is not yet included in the report. But a first transfer of €1.1 million has already been received, with the rest to follow by the end of January 2023. For the current year, 24 million euros are already on the books. That's because on January 9, 2023, Mynaric signed a contract with an undisclosed U.S. customer for the delivery of CONDOR Mk3 optical communications terminals. The terminals are scheduled for delivery in the second half of 2023.

Does SpaceX's Starshield rely on Mynaric?

Satellite constellations currently being planned or under construction are subject to stringent requirements. This is all the more true for those dedicated to communications and/or data transmission. Not least due to geopolitical changes, interest in quantum-encrypted and thus tap-proof data transmission is growing rapidly. As recently as November 2022, EU Internal Market Commissioner Thierry Breton announced the EU's decision to build its own satellite constellation, IRIS², by 2027. UNIO, the joint venture between Isar Aerospace, Mynaric, Reflex Aerospace and SES, is also planning its own satellite network. And with Starshield, SpaceX is aggressively targeting government customers.

The market for these constellations is enormous: the EU alone estimates that IRIS² will cost €6 billion to develop. With its technology, Mynaric has a good chance of getting a piece of this cake. Bulent Altan is correspondingly confident: "We expect several big opportunities to come to market in 2023, and we believe Mynaric is very well positioned to benefit from what we expect to be a strong year and decade of growth for laser communications." Whether and to what extent SpaceX will rely on German expertise remains a matter of speculation. But a look at Altan's resume shows that there is a strong connection to the US NewSpace pioneer. After all, he was a senior engineer at SpaceX for almost 12 years. After a successful 2022, he gives a glimpse into the near future - in his usual wording with room for interpretation: "In 2023, we plan to produce and deliver significant quantities of optical communications terminals to customers as part of contracted and future programs."