Scisys
Scisys set up a new group holding company in Ireland that acquired all shares from the former Scisys group holding company, which was headquartered in Chippenham, England. Credit: Scisys.

WASHINGTON — Canadian IT services company CGI Group on Dec. 18 completed its $103.2 million acquisition of Scisys, a Dublin-based company that provides satellite ground segment infrastructure for customers such as the European Commission. 

CGI Group, which also provides space software and cybersecurity for commercial, civil and military satellites, said its European subsidiary purchased all of Scisys’ issued and to be issued shares. 

Scisys said it expects to delist from the London Stock Exchange Dec. 19, following the buyout. 

CGI Group said the purchase adds roughly 670 employees, mainly in the U.K. and Germany, to the company’s staff of 77,500. 

“The addition of SCISYS consultants and IP to CGI’s local presence and global reach will benefit our clients, and in particular make our investment in the European space industry more relevant than ever before,” said Torsten Strass, CGI president of Central and Eastern Europe operations.

Scisys relocated its headquarters from Chippenham, England, to Ireland last year to avoid losing space business on European Union programs, notably its Galileo navigation satellite constellation. 

CGI Group and Scisys both have contracts with Thales Alenia Space for Galileo ground segment work. 

CGI and Scisys had expected the purchase to close in November, but delayed it because of the U.K. general election Dec. 12. The companies said they shifted the purchase completion date to December so Scisys’ media and broadcast business could focus on the election undistracted. 

Scisys reported 29.4 million pounds ($38.5 million) in revenue for the first six months of 2019, up 2 percent, and a backlog of 102.5 million pounds split across its space, media solutions and defense business lines. 

CGI on Nov. 12 reported full-year revenue of 12.1 billion Canadian dollars ($9.2 billion) for its fiscal year 2019. 

Caleb Henry is a former SpaceNews staff writer covering satellites, telecom and launch. He previously worked for Via Satellite and NewSpace Global.He earned a bachelor’s degree in political science along with a minor in astronomy from...