Ascent Solar (NASDAQ: ASTI) announced a commercial agreement to sell its space solar panels. NOVI Space will purchase solar blankets from Ascent Solar for use on NOVI’s upcoming satellite constellation. NOVI’s first satellite, a 3U-sized CubeSat, launched in January 2025. Pictures of that satellite indicate it ran on more common Germanium triple-junction solar panels. NOVI now plans to launch two additional satellites in 2026, eventually aiming for a constellation of 30 satellites by 2028.
The exact bus size NOVI plans for its next two satellites remains unknown, as does the bus size for the remainder of the 30-satellite constellation. However, NOVI’s website pictures a 6U satellite with six panels. The panels shown are not ASTI’s CIGS blankets; instead, they appear to be standard 6U panels which, if equipped with Germanium triple-junction cells, are rated at about 20 Watts each. This suggests NOVI may be planning satellites that require 120 Watts of power.
Should this be the case, the first two satellites may equate to approximately 240 Watts of orders from ASTI. As previously covered, ASTI’s published cost per watt is $30-45. This translates to roughly $7,200-$10,800 in revenue for the CIGS blankets to power these first two satellites.
Should Ascent Solar supply CIGS arrays for the remaining 28 satellites, current pricing suggests $100,000 to $150,000 in additional revenue could be forthcoming between now and NOVI’s constellation completion in 2028. Ascent Solar previously forecasted $50-$80 million in revenue for 2025. Even if they were to supply all 30 satellites in this initial phase (not just the initial 28), they would still be a long way off from achieving this revenue goal.
Ascent Solar posted revenue of just $0 and $15,624 during its last two quarters.