Amid crisis with Morocco, Spain wants to buy €7.4 million worth of satellite imagery
Amid heightened tensions with Rabat, Spain’s Defense Ministry wants to spend up to €7.4 million on purchasing very high-resolution satellite imagery. The system will strengthen the Spanish army’s observation and intelligence capabilities for two years.
The project is detailed in a call for tenders published on August 24 in the Spanish Official Gazette. Its maximum value reaches exactly 7,438,016 euros.
The Spanish General Staff is not seeking to purchase a new satellite, but access to images produced by several commercial constellations. The data must cover the visible spectrum, infrared and radar. The contract is classified under the category “intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition and reconnaissance.”
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The framework agreement will last two years and may bring together up to ten operators. Interested companies have until September 21 to submit their bids, before the opening scheduled for the following day.
The specifications do not designate any country for monitoring. They will allow the Spanish Defense Ministry to obtain images of different regions of the world. Its launch nevertheless takes on particular significance after the migration crisis in Sebta and the sudden deterioration of relations between Madrid and Rabat.
Spain is also seeking to address certain technological shortcomings compared with Morocco. Several Spanish military personnel recently acknowledged the kingdom’s lead in the field of drones, while Madrid modernizes its surveillance capabilities around the Strait of Gibraltar and its territories located in North Africa.
PAZ 2 promises images with a resolution of 10 centimeters
The purchase of commercial imagery will accompany a much more ambitious program: PAZ 2. Spain is preparing two radar satellites intended primarily for its Defense Ministry, for a total investment of 1.011 billion euros.
According to Airbus and Hisdesat, these satellites will be able to provide images with a resolution of up to ten centimeters, day and night and regardless of weather conditions. Each will cover up to 6.7 million square kilometers per day, with a five-minute delay between image capture and availability.
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The Spanish government has just accelerated funding for the program. A decision published on September 3 raises the funds mobilized in 2026 to 245.6 million euros. The first PAZ 2 satellite is scheduled to enter service around the middle of 2031.
Madrid is thus building a two-tier system: images immediately accessible from commercial operators, followed by its own new-generation military satellites. This capability will allow the Spanish army to observe the Strait, the North African coasts and any other area deemed strategic more quickly and precisely.
