Skynopy and Safran Space Win SkyConnect Kenya Project to Digitise and Accelerate Antenna Commercialisation

Paris, February 23, 2026. Skynopy has announced that it has been selected as a winner of the FASEP – Digital Infrastructures programme, a financing scheme of the French Ministry of Economy, Finance and Industrial and Digital Sovereignty (Bercy), for the SkyConnect Kenya project. The initiative is being implemented in collaboration with Safran Space. The project is designed as a strategic, structuring intervention in support of the Kenya Space Agency (KSA), which operates a 4.5-meter S/X-band Earth observation antenna recently installed at its Nairobi site. Currently dedicated to a single satellite, the antenna retains significant excess capacity, presenting an opportunity to optimise its utilisation and accelerate its commercial potential.

Through the SkyConnect Kenya project, Skynopy, in partnership with Safran Space, proposes to deploy its Ground Station Stack technology on the KSA antenna in order to:

• Integrate the Kenyan antenna into Skynopy’s global network of ground stations.
• Orchestrate operations through a secure digital infrastructure.
• Ensure mission operations using off-the-shelf virtualised solutions “Nuron” (Digitiser and virtual modems) and the expertise of Safran Space teams,
• Enable end-to-end Cloud connectivity for geospatial data transfer.
• Monetise the available capacity by making it available to Skynopy’s satellite operator customers.

This Skynopy-led project is the first carried out with a space agency and the first integration of an institutional antenna within a commercial ground station network.

French Industrial Collaboration Driving an Innovative Partnership Model

This innovative institutional-commercial approach is made possible by the complementarity of sovereign French technologies developed by Skynopy and Safran Space. To advance its expertise in secure software orchestration and satellite link operations, Skynopy leverages the performance and reliability of Safran Space’s virtualised ground equipment, along with its recognised leadership in digital signal processing for space communications.

Through this collaboration, SkyConnect Kenya promises an optimised ground architecture model that ensures efficient satellite communication operations. This pilot project paves the way for replicating the model in other countries with significant excess ground infrastructure capacity, contributing to improved asset utilisation, the strengthening of local space ecosystems, and the development of sovereign and sustainable satellite connectivity.

“The Kenya Space Agency (KSA) is pleased to partner in the SkyConnect Kenya Project, spearheaded by Skynopy in partnership with Safran Space. This collaboration presents a unique opportunity to develop national space capability and space operations through commercialisation of the extra capacity of the KSA ground receiver station. It marks the country’s first-of-its-kind public–private partnership (PPP) in utilisation of ground-based space infrastructure, underscoring a shared commitment to innovation, capacity building, and sustainable growth. Kenya Space Agency remains confident that this partnership will deliver transformative impact, promote technological progress and enhancing Kenya’s space operations”.

Supporting French Digital and Space Companies for Export

The FASEP (Private Sector Study and Aid Fund) supports innovative projects led by French companies that contribute to the development of strategic infrastructure in partner countries. Skynopy and Safran Space participated in the official FASEP Digital Infrastructure awards ceremony held at Bercy, attended by Ms Anne Le Henanff, Minister for Artificial Intelligence and Digital Affairs. During the event, the two companies jointly presented the SkyConnect Kenya project and highlighted the structuring role of FASEP funding in digitising a Kenya Space Agency Earth observation antenna, alongside other FASEP awardees such as Eutelsat.

About Skynopy

Founded in October 2023 by Pierre Bertrand (CEO) and Antonin Hirsch (CTO), Skynopy develops a turnkey satellite connectivity solution designed to provide operators with simple, fast, and reliable access to their satellites. This solution optimises mission control, in-orbit operations, and constellation management. Relying on a global network of antennas built through strategic partnerships and reinforced by the progressive deployment of proprietary antennas, Skynopy already supports around ten satellite operators. This international expansion strategy has enabled the company to reach exceptional momentum, with 17 operational sites worldwide in less than 18 months.

Press Contacts Skynopy

• Ilinca Spita – 06 64 75 12 98 – ilinca@edifice-communication.com (EN)
• Stéphane Laurain – 06 98 58 38 35 – stephane@edifice-communication.com