July 27 (Reuters) – Eutelsat and SES stand to receive roughly $6.1 billion in combined payments for helping clear satellite spectrum for U.S. wireless services, they said on Monday.
Eutelsat expects $504 million in pre-tax payments, while SES expects about $5.6 billion, under a Federal Communications Commission plan to make part of the C-band spectrum available for mobile networks.
Eutelsat shares were seen rising 8% in premarket trading.
The U.S. Federal Communications Commission has approved a framework to move satellite services out of part of the C-band radio spectrum, allowing 160 megahertz of capacity to be used by telecoms companies for next-generation wireless networks.
The payments depend on the companies moving satellite services from the spectrum by deadlines in 2030 and 2031, while keeping customer services running. Both companies will also be reimbursed for eligible transition costs.
(Reporting by Leo Marchandon in Gdansk, editing by Milla Nissi-Prussak)
