Spire Global closes stalled $241 million maritime sale

TAMPA, Fla. — Satellite operator Spire Global has closed the $241 million sale of its commercial maritime tracking business to Belgian analytics provider Kpler, ending a legal dispute over the stalled transaction.

Vienna, Virginia-based Spire said April 25 it used proceeds from the sale to pay off its roughly $100 million in outstanding debt. The remaining funds have been set aside for growth initiatives across its weather, aviation and radio frequency geolocation data businesses, as well as its hosted payload services.

The deal, which comprises non-U.S. government customer contracts but excludes Spire’s fleet of more than 100 satellites and related infrastructure, includes a $7.5 million payment for transition services and data over 12 months.

Spire initially announced the sale in November, expecting to finalize it by the end of March following regulatory approvals. 

However, the company announced Feb. 11 it had filed legal action against Kpler to compel the completion of the deal, asserting that all conditions for closing had been met.

Spire said it would dismiss the lawsuit if Kpler closed the acquisition before the end of April, a deadline the Belgian company met with five days to spare.

Before finalizing the sale, Spire had to negotiate temporary relief agreements with lenders and include a “going concern” warning in financial updates, noted Raymond James analyst Ric Prentiss.

Spire had also missed deadlines for filing financial updates while it reviewed accounting practices.

“With the debt now gone and the cash on Spire’s balance sheet, we believe the risk profile of the equity is much lower,” Prentiss said.

“Moreover, the distraction of the failure to close, combined with Spire’s now-completed accounting review, had impacted the ability to close deals with customers, slowing revenue growth as well.”

Still, Prentiss said Spire remains a risky proposition as it continues burning cash on its path toward profitability.

Spire recently reported 2024 revenue up 13% year-over-year at $111 million. Free cash flow was negative $45 million, which the company said reflected a 16% improvement year-over-year.

The operator also forecast 12-17% in revenue growth for 2025, without the maritime business, with sales set to accelerate in the second half of the year.