Saft announced Wednesday it has received a contract from Boeing to supply lithium-ion batteries for the Mobile Satellite Ventures Satellite program. The multi-million dollar contract will mark Saft's largest U.S. commercial satellite contract for Li-ion batteries and the first commercial satellite program utilizing Li-ion technology for Boeing.
The satellites will be among the largest and most powerful ever built and will be provided to Mobile Satellite Ventures for an advanced commercial telecom network, the company said in a news release.
Saft will become Boeing's designated source for Li-ion technology for two of the Boeing-built GEO-Mobile MSV satellites, providing up to 18 years of battery life.
Saft's VES140 40 Ah Li-ion cells – arranged in a 6P12S configuration – will provide onboard power to ensure continuous, reliable operation of the satellites when their solar panels are in eclipse.
The batteries allow Boeing and MSV to decrease the satellite's weight by 30 percent to 50 percent, versus standard nickel-hydrogen battery chemistry. The savings on the batteries – which produce 120 watt-hours per kilogram of weight – allow the satellite manufacturer and user to dedicate more of the satellite's mass to the payload – the revenue-generating part of the spacecraft.
"Saft has been working with Boeing for many years and this award is the result of a group effort to get Li-ion batteries on-board their GEO-Mobile satellites," said John Searle, Saft's chief executive officer.
"Li-ion is the ideal battery technology for space applications due to its superior performance and light weight. We believe this award strengthens Saft's position as a leading supplier of Li-ion battery systems for the U.S. space market," Searle added.
Boeing will build the GEO-mobile satellites based on its 702 infrastructure for MSV's patented Ancillary Terrestrial Component technology. Each satellite in the network will supply 11,000 watts of power.
