Artist rendition of Spire’s Lemur-2 satellite. Photo: Spire

Spire Global announced plans to go public through a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) on Monday — a two-for-one space SPAC day as launcher Rocket Lab debuted plans as well. 

Spire, which collects spaced-based data through a constellation of over 100 satellites, plans to merge with NavSight Holdings in a deal that values the combined company at a $1.6 billion. The transaction is expected to provide $475 million in proceeds, and it includes a fully committed $245 million common stock PIPE, anchored by Tiger Global Management. The transaction is expected to be completed in summer 2021. 

Spire’s LEMUR satellites collect data, which subscription customers access along with insights and predictive analytics through Spire’s software. The company serves customers across weather, aviation, maritime, and government. It also offers a “space-as-a-service” business model in which customers can operate their own payloads on orbit through Spire’s API. 

According to the investor presentation, Spire reported $28 million in GAAP revenue in 2020, marking 54% growth over the previous year. The company expects to reach $35 million in GAAP revenue this year, and nearly $1 billion in 2025. 

“Our proprietary data and solutions help customers solve some of earth’s greatest challenges, including Net Zero and Climate Change adaptation. It has been immensely inspiring to see customers from all over the world turn to Spire’s solutions to help them make decisions about their business with confidence and speed and we are excited about the continued growth ahead. This transaction funds these growth plans and allows us to pursue, on a more aggressive timetable, this massive and growing long-term opportunity ahead of us,” said Peter Platzer, Spire founder and CEO.

[Watch Via Satellite’s Thursday Morning Conversation with Spire CEO Peter Platzer]