IHC moves to acquire 80% of Marlan Space in major UAE satellite push

Deal adds satellites, AI-enabled Earth observation and advanced manufacturing

Last updated: September 09, 2026 | 08:47

Nivetha Dayanand, Assistant Business Editor

2 MIN READ

IHC moves to acquire 80% of Marlan Space in major UAE satellite push

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Dubai: IHC is moving to acquire an 80% stake in the holding company behind UAE-based Marlan Space, giving the Abu Dhabi investment group a majority position in a business spanning satellite manufacturing, Earth observation, advanced computing and space infrastructure.

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The acquisition is being pursued through IHC’s wholly owned subsidiary International Tech Group SP LLC, which is in the process of acquiring the stake in Marlan Holding RSC Ltd, subject to regulatory approvals.

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The deal would expand IHC’s technology portfolio into deeptech and the new space economy, bringing satellite infrastructure, advanced manufacturing and emerging space technologies into the group’s wider investments across artificial intelligence, digital infrastructure and advanced technologies.

Satellites built in Abu Dhabi

Marlan Space operates and invests across space systems, autonomous operations and advanced compute, with one of its main businesses already manufacturing satellite systems in Abu Dhabi.

The company founded Orbitworks through a joint venture with US-based Loft Orbital, creating what it describes as the Middle East’s first private space infrastructure company.

Orbitworks designs, builds, tests and operates satellite systems from its assembly, integration and testing facility in KEZAD, with the operation supporting the production and deployment of satellite constellations for regional and international customers.

Its flagship Altair programme is an AI-enabled Earth observation constellation comprising multiple satellites. The system combines optical, hyperspectral, thermal, infrared and passive RF payloads with onboard processing.

The first Altair satellite has been completed, while additional satellites are being assembled in Abu Dhabi.

Space is becoming an increasingly important part of the global technology and infrastructure landscape, with applications extending across communications, Earth observation, data, AI and many other sectors. Marlan Space has built a strong platform in this emerging ecosystem, combining technology, infrastructure and international partnerships. This acquisition gives IHC a strategic position in the new space economy and provides Marlan Space with access to the Group’s capital, capabilities and Dynamic Value Networks to accelerate its next phase of growth.

Syed Basar Shueb, CEO of IHC

Majority shareholder for Marlan Space

The transaction would give Marlan Space access to IHC’s capital and wider group capabilities while retaining its focus on developing space infrastructure and technologies from Abu Dhabi.

With IHC as our majority shareholder, we will have an even stronger platform to scale our capabilities, deepen our partnerships and pursue opportunities across the global space economy. Our focus remains on building infrastructure and technologies that can serve the UAE while competing globally.

Hamdullah Mohib, CEO of Marlan Space

IHC expands its technology portfolio

IHC said the acquisition will give it a platform for investment and growth across satellite infrastructure, advanced manufacturing and emerging space technologies.

Marlan Space’s partnership with Loft Orbital provides an international technology connection for Orbitworks and supports the deployment of satellites through flexible and standardised infrastructure.

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IHC also plans to connect Marlan Space with capabilities across its wider portfolio, including technology, data and infrastructure, where satellite-based capabilities can be applied.

The transaction remains subject to customary regulatory approvals and closing conditions.

Nivetha DayanandAssistant Business Editor

Nivetha Dayanand is Assistant Business Editor at Gulf News, covering aviation, financial markets and commodities. A business and financial journalist with a strong interest in multimedia storytelling, she regularly takes complex financial and economic subjects beyond the written word, producing explainer videos that make them easier for a wider audience to understand. Nivetha has interviewed senior policymakers, business leaders and global financial figures both on and off camera. Her past guests include UAE Minister of Economy and Tourism Abdulla bin Touq Al Marri, Khaled bin Alwaleed Al Saud, a member of the House of Saud and the founder and CEO of KBW Ventures, Jihad Azour, Director of the Middle East and Central Asia Department at the International Monetary Fund and Indian ministers Hardeep Singh Puri and N. Chandrababu Naidu. She has also hosted and moderated panels, conferences and awards shows, bringing her newsroom experience to live conversations on business, finance and the economy. An Erasmus Mundus journalism alum, Nivetha is drawn to stories that affect people directly and to reporting that gives a platform to voices that might otherwise go unheard. She was among the first journalists to speak to Petrofac employees in the UAE about unpaid salaries, broke the news of the planned demolition of Dubai’s well-known “Toyota Building”, and helped set the record straight on widely circulated claims that a giant replica of the Moon was coming to Dubai. More recently, her exclusive interview with EDGE Group CEO Hamad Al Marar revealed how the UAE-based defence group deployed its systems along the country’s shore border and established a geofence around the UAE within 48 hours of the February 28 escalation. Prior to joining Gulf News, Nivetha worked at ITP Media, where she helped launch Finance Middle East, a new publication covering the region’s financial sector. Her role spanned reporting and editing, video production, interviews and events. Across print, digital, and video, she focuses on finding the people behind business stories and explaining why those stories matter to the audience reading or watching them.

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