Photo: ST Engineering

ST Engineering, parent company of ST Engineering iDirect, assessed a $667 million impairment for the company after assessing its value in use (VIU) as $170 million. ST Engineering cited Starlink gaining market share and consolidation among other satellite operators as factors leading to a weaker operating environment. 

The iDirect group reported a 9% year-over-year revenue decline in the first nine months of 2025, and a 22% year-over-year drop in EBITDA in that same time period. 

ST Engineering disclosed the impairment on Nov. 12, saying it is in “ongoing active discussions on strategic options for the iDirect group.” 

The company said a turnaround effort with a new CEO in 2023, strengthened management and engineering team, and reduction in headcount is taking longer to show results.

The disclosure details changes in the satellite industry, with the amount of capacity deployed by Starlink with Amazon Leo on the horizon. These systems have proprietary ground systems. These changes have driven consolidation among Geostationary Orbit (GEO) operators and service providers, eroding the bargaining power of ground segment providers like iDirect. 

It also reported that customer adoption of the new cloud-native, multi-orbit Intuition platform is taking longer than expected, impacted by delayed and limited launches from GEO operators. 

“The Group remains positive on the long-term prospects of the satcom industry. However, the near-term operating environment and iDirect group’s continued losses mean that the turnaround will take longer than expected. The Group is evaluating strategic options with the objective of mitigating risks and financial exposures to ST Engineering, as well as strengthening the iDirect group’s ability to better support its customers,” the company said in a statement.