Terran Orbital Boosts Revenue 130% in 2022 With SDA Deal  

Terran Orbital facility in Irvine, California. Photo: Terran Orbital

Terran Orbital reported a record $94.2 million of revenue in 2022 — more than doubling revenue compared to 2021, driven by the company’s subcontract for the Space Development Agency’s proliferated network. 

The company released its full year results on March 21. The $94.2 million in revenue was a 130% increase compared to about $41 million in revenue in 2021. This was Terran Orbital’s first full-year financial results after going public in March 2022. 

Revenue was in line with the 2022 revenue projections Terran Orbital provided when it announced its special purpose acquisition (SPAC) deal in October 2021. 

In 2022, Terran Orbital delivered 10 satellites to Lockheed Martin for the SDA’s Transport Layer Tranche 0, which is part of the SDA’s recently renamed Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture, or PWSA. The network will provide secure high-bandwidth, low-latency data links for beyond-line-of-sight tracking, targeting, and communications.

Terran Orbital is also building 42 satellites for Lockheed’s Tranche 1 contract, and CEO Marc Bell said in a Tuesday statement that the company expects to begin delivering these satellites in 2023.  “Leveraging this performance, we are preparing bids for Transport Layer Tranche 2 and other SDA programs including T2DES and Tracking Layer which represent nearly 300 satellites this and next year,” Bell said. 

The company made a change to its strategy in 2022, canceling plans for its own constellation of synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellites, in order to focus on its manufacturing business. Terran Orbital recorded a loss on impairment of $22.4 million during the fourth quarter with this change, related to costs previously capitalized with developing and constructing the initial satellites. 

The company’s net loss is improving compared to revenue. In 2022, Terran Orbital reported a net loss of $164 million, compared, to a net loss of $139 million in 2021.

Backlog was up 131% at the end of 2022 compared to the end of 2021, at approximately $170.8 million, primarily due to the SDA deal. Terran Orbital reported the backlog includes more than 60 satellites in various stages of completion. The 300-satellite Rivada Space Networks deal worth $2.4 billion is not included because it was signed in 2023. The company said it is still evaluating how it will present the Rivada contract in its backlog.  

Commenting on market trends and demand, Bell said customers consistently want larger and larger satellites with more power capabilities, delivered at speed. Terran Orbital is looking at expanding into having payloads in stock in order to “dramatically shorten” the current two-year cycle to design, build, and deliver a satellite. 

“Coming out of SATELLITE 2023 — overwhelmingly customers prefer speed to price. [We had] very interesting conversations. With all the robotics that we’re putting in, speed is something that we will excel at. And price is where we’re going to make our mark and become profitable,” Bell said during an earnings call. 

Terran Orbital did not provide financial guidance for 2023 but said it expects to begin delivery of 42 satellite buses for the SDA Tranche 1 Transport Layer and anticipates that it will begin development work for the Rivada Space Networks constellation in 2023.