Filtronic: Yorkshire firm secures ‘largest order to date’ with Musk's Space X
Telecommunications firm Filtronic has secured its largest contract to date with Elon Musk’s Space X, announcing a deal worth $32.5m, or £24m, with the Texas-based company.
Filtronic, which has a base in Leeds, saw its share price jump around nine per cent on Tuesday morning after it announced a major deal with the space-tech firm.
The latest deal comes after Filtronic announced in February that it had secured a $20.9m (£16.8m) contract deal with SpaceX, building on an existing partnership with the firm which was launched in April of 2024.
Nat Edington, chief executive officer of Filtronic, said: "We are delighted to have secured our largest order to date with SpaceX, reinforcing Filtronic's growing reputation for delivering high-performance radio frequency solutions to the high-growth space market.
“This milestone builds on the momentum of recent contract awards and highlights the progress we are making as we expand in key strategic markets."
Filtronic was founded by Leeds University professor, David Rhodes, in the 1970s. The firm, which has an office in Yeadon, designs and manufactures products for the aerospace, defence, space and telecoms infrastructure markets.
The company’s latest deal will see it supply Space X with its E-band Cerus 32 Solid State Power Amplifier (SSPA), a piece of technology used in high-frequency telecommunications.
Filtronic said that as a result of the order, it is now confident that it will exceed current revenue expectations for 2026.
The contract win also comes after Filtronic announced last month that it had secured a contract to develop and supply technology for Airbus, as well as a contract for airborne radar technology with defence firm, Leonardo.
Filtronic’s latest deal comes shortly after Space X owner Elon Musk announced late last month that he was leaving his role in Washington with Donald Trump to focus on his businesses.
The announcement was followed by a high-profile public spat between the world’s richest man and the President of the United States, which played out in posts between the two on social media.
As part of the war of words, President Trump posted on Truth Social last week threatening to go after contracts held by Space X and Musk’s internet company Starlink.
The President said in a post: “The easiest way to save money in our Budget, Billions and Billions of Dollars, is to terminate Elon’s Governmental Subsidies and Contracts.”
Mr Musk responded in a post on X by telling Trump to “go ahead, make my day”, and later announced that SpaceX would begin to decommission the spacecraft it had used to carry astronauts and cargo to the International Space Station for Nasa.
Shares in Musk’s electric vehicle firm, Tesla, fell more than 14 per cent shortly after Donald Trump’s criticisms, knocking around $150bn (£110bn) off Tesla’s market valuation.
In its latest interim results, posted in February, Filtronic saw its revenue lift to £25.6m for the six months ending 30 November, up from £8.5m the year prior.
The company also posted operating profit of £6.8m, up from a loss of £0.4m in the same period the year before.
In a statement issued at the time, chairman Jonathan Neale said: "We are pleased to communicate this strong set of interim results. Robust order intake has resulted in the improved revenue and profit outlook in H2.”
“Investing in the business to underpin the orderbook has been timely and effective and we look forward to being able to communicate more about the next financial year as things develop during H2".