Photo: U.S. Space Force

A dozen satellite companies are to benefit from the latest U.S. Space Force (USSF) 10 year contract worth upto $237 million as the USSF looks to boost spacecraft procurement. The USSF has established an Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract that aims to leverage commercial solutions to reduce costs and streamline processes for the USSF Space Systems Command’s (SSC) Department of Defense (DOD) Space Test Program (STP) with the aim of driving innovation. The USSF announced the new contract awards, May 1.

The aim is to procure full lifecycle solutions for Science & Technology experiments through a Space Test Experiments Platform (STEP) 2.0 contract that has been awarded to these 12 companies. The first STEP 2.0 Delivery Order is scheduled to begin in January 2026. SSC manages a $15.6 billion space acquisition budget for the Department of Defense.

The 12 satellite companies to be a part of this contract are: Axient; Blue Canyon Technologies; General Atomics; Lockheed Martin; Loft Orbital Federal; Lynk Global; Orbit Systems; Spire Global; Tyvak Nano-Satellite Systems; Utah State University Space Dynamics Lab and York Space Systems.

“The DoD Space Test Program will gain measurable value from leveraging industry insights and capabilities to provide proven spacecraft to host the DoD’s next generation of space technologies,” USSF Lt. Col. Brian Shimek, SSC Director of the DoD Space Test Program, said in a statement.