Bidders for Galileo Urged to Merge

According to EE Times the two consortiums formed to build Europe's € 3.2 billion Galileo satellite navigation system are being urged to pool their resources and bid as a team to construct the GPS.
The move comes after the Galileo Joint Undertaking (GJU) failed to select a winner, saying it needed another three months to decide because it could not choose between the rival bids either on technical or financial grounds.

The two bidders are iNavSat, created by Thales of France, the Franco-German defence group EADS and Inmarsat, and the Eurely consortium spearheaded by Alcatel of France and Finmeccanica of Italy, along with Aena and Hispasat of Spain.

According to a report in French newspaper La Tribune the two consortiums had reached a partnership understanding and executives from the two groups jointly visited Brussels this week to propose a common bid to the GJU. However, the GJU would not confirm an agreement has been reached.