Moncloa, Ferraz, Defence, Indra and Hispasat start 2024 with a wake-up call
A telluric movement that is advancing in crecendo is about to hit the Spanish aerospace and defence ecosystem. Its first effects were detected months ago in the underground tectonic plates that run between the Moncloa Palace and number 70 Ferraz Street, the PSOE headquarters in Madrid.
The initial tremors were slight, almost imperceptible, and manifested one here and there, with no apparent interconnection between them. But Mother Nature has given rise to two other tectonic plates with unpredictable consequences. One also has its origin in the Spanish capital, at Paseo de la Castellana, 109, the headquarters of the central body of the Ministry of Defence.
The other is in the town of Alcobendas, in the vicinity of Madrid, at number 35, Avenida de Bruselas. This is the headquarters of Indra, the big national technology company, whose main shareholder - with 28 per cent - is the Sociedad Estatal de Participaciones Industriales (SEPI), a company attached to the Ministry of Finance, which is also headed by the first vice-president of the government, María Jesús Montero.
The analysts and seismologists of the Moncloa Palace's Battalion of Advisors, the well-known BATAPLOF, have carried out the necessary engineering work to ensure that the tectonic plates of the Moncloa-Ferraz and Castellana-Alcobendas axes converge towards each other. And after some very careful calculations, they have identified that the epicentre of the next earthquake must start, at least formally, from Indra's headquarters.
The reason? The BATAPLOF is determined to reconvert the collective of SMEs linked to the aerospace and military sectors and to constitute in 2024 the longed-for national champion of defence, but under state control.
Indra's non-executive chairman, Marc Murtra, said after the General Shareholders' Meeting on 30 June: "Indra has the vocation and the decision to be the great technological operator in the field of defence, to be the great Spanish defence company and, therefore, yes, to be the national champion".
Third company moves
Experts have not yet been able to determine the intensity on the Richter scale of the impending earthquake. An unknown number of sensors installed in different geographical locations agree that the magnitude of the tremors will be less than 6 and will have slight abrasive effects.
But data collected by other precision instruments indicate that the intensity will be greater than 6 and will unleash a large amount of energy that will affect the entire aerospace and national defence fabric. Indra aims to "scale up on systems with larger growth areas", said Marc Murtra mid-year.
There is talk of telluric movements on Arquimea, the Oesia Group - or just Tecnobit and Inster - Elecnor Deimos Space and even Santa Bárbara. But these actions, if true, are not yet ripe, at least in appearance.
The official entry of José Vicente de los Mozos as CEO of Indra after his ratification at the end of June by the Shareholders' Meeting has focused most of the company's efforts on the defence sector. Within the military aeronautics framework and, specifically, in phase 1B of the research and development of the FCAS programme, the future combat aircraft that Germany, Spain and France are working hard to develop.
But just a few weeks before the stroke of midnight and the grapes of 31 December, a sudden release of energy emerged with a vengeance. The BATAPLOF had anticipated that the dominant tectonic plates would describe a convergent movement, and so it happened.
The tectonic plates of the Moncloa-Ferraz and Castellana-Alcobendas axes have positioned themselves over Hispasat, the main Spanish commercial satellite communications operator. Something similar has also happened over ITP Aero, manufacturer of key subsystems for military aircraft engines, which has not been consummated.
Eyes and wallet on space
In the event that Hispasat comes under Indra's control, it will be a great leap that, according to the technology company, "will usher in a new era". To date, Indra's space activities have focused on the development and production of antennas and equipment for satellite tracking and control centres. Through its subsidiary Startical, shared with ENAIRE, Indra is developing a constellation of surveillance and communications satellites to improve air traffic management.
The seismic movement activated from BATAPLOF aims to create a mega company that brings together different aerospace and defence capabilities, an idea that dates back several decades and requires boldness and economic resources. A previous step taken by Indra in October was the replacement of its head of space, Domingo Castro. He was replaced by Inmaculada Serrano, a professional from Elecnor Deimos Space with extensive management experience in the development and operation of satellites.
In order to facilitate the possible succulent morsel of Indra-eat-Hispasat, Moncloa's tectonic plate has elevated the former astronaut and former Minister of Science and Technology, Pedro Duque, to the position of president of the satellite operator. It was at the extraordinary meeting of its Board of Directors on 18 December. Apparently, he could not wait a minute longer in view of the Christmas hamper and the extraordinary remuneration for December.
President of Hispasat is a position for which the former minister has no responsibility. For that he has the CEO, Miguel Ángel Panduro, who has held the position since October 2019. Pedro Duque only has to do what he is told from the BATAPLOF and enjoy himself, as did his predecessor, the former mayor of Barcelona, Jordí Hereu, now Minister of Industry.
To make matters worse, Moncloa has doubled its imposition of the K factor, i.e., they do what they want. The Hispasat board of directors has also appointed Therese Jamaa - the partner of the Foreign Minister, José Manuel Albares - as a member of the company's board of directors. In this way, everything stays in the family and more than one or two will be watching the telluric movements from the sidelines and will give their votes to whatever the BATAPLOF deigns to send.
It should not be forgotten that Hispasat and its subsidiary Hisdesat - which provides satellite communications and observation services to the Spanish government and third countries - are companies controlled by Red Eléctrica, SEPI and the Centre for Technological Development and Innovation (CDTI), all of which are in the hands of the State.