Abu Dhabi’s IHC to Acquire 80% of Marlan Space: The Owner of Orbitworks, the Middle East’s First Private Satellite Factory, and the 10-Satellite Altair AI Constellation Joins a Conglomerate With AED 860 Billion Market Value

2026-09-09

On Tuesday 8 September 2026 IHC, the Abu Dhabi conglomerate chaired by Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed and ranked by Forbes Middle East as the most valuable listed company in the UAE, announced that its wholly owned subsidiary International Tech Group SP LLC is acquiring an 80% stake in Marlan Holding RSC Ltd, the parent company of the UAE space firm Marlan Space. The value of the deal was not disclosed, and completion depends on regulatory approvals. The target owns Orbitworks, a joint venture with US-based Loft Orbital that operates the Middle East’s first private satellite factory in Khalifa Economic Zones Abu Dhabi (KEZAD), rated for up to 50 satellites a year, and the Altair programme, a 10-satellite AI-enabled Earth observation constellation whose first spacecraft is already built and booked for an October 2026 launch. The buyer brings a market value of AED 860 billion, a second-quarter 2026 net profit of AED 12.8 billion and a stated plan to deploy up to USD 8 billion worldwide within six months. Khaleej Times reported the announcement on 8 September 2026; Gulf News and The National confirmed the legal entities involved and the status of the Altair satellites.

What IHC announced on 8 September 2026

The structure of the transaction is simple. International Tech Group SP LLC, a company wholly owned by IHC, buys 80% of Marlan Holding RSC Ltd. Marlan Holding is the holding company above Marlan Space, so IHC becomes the majority shareholder of the whole Marlan Space group rather than of a single project. The remaining 20% stays with the existing owners; the announcement does not name them, and neither company disclosed the price or a target closing date.

IHC described the purpose in portfolio terms: the deal expands its technology holdings into deeptech and the new space economy and gives the group a platform for investment across satellite infrastructure, advanced manufacturing and emerging space technologies. Syed Basar Shueb, CEO of IHC, said that space is becoming an increasingly important part of the global technology and infrastructure landscape, with applications in communications, Earth observation, data and AI, and that the acquisition gives IHC a strategic position in the new space economy while giving Marlan Space access to the group’s capital, capabilities and what IHC calls its Dynamic Value Networks. Hamdullah Mohib, CEO of Marlan Space, said that with IHC as majority shareholder the company will have a stronger platform to scale its capabilities and pursue opportunities across the global space economy, while keeping its focus on infrastructure that serves the UAE and competes globally.

Who Marlan Space is

Marlan Space describes itself as an investor-operator: it invests in space and space-related companies and runs them, with a portfolio spanning space systems, autonomous operations and advanced compute. On its website the company states that it is backed by the Royal Group of Abu Dhabi; AGBI, which interviewed the company’s chief executive in July 2026, describes the Royal Group as the family office of the Abu Dhabi ruling family chaired by Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed, who also chairs IHC. The transaction therefore moves Marlan Space from a private family-office backer into a listed group under the same chairman, with the reporting and capital-markets discipline that comes with an ADX listing.

The company’s chief executive, Hamdullah Mohib, previously served as Afghanistan’s ambassador to Washington and later as its national security adviser; he also acts as chief executive of Orbitworks. Beyond satellites, Marlan Space says it is working to establish infrastructure for rocket manufacturing and testing in the UAE, a line of business that has not yet produced a launch vehicle and is not mentioned in the announced deal terms.

Orbitworks and Altair: the assets behind the deal

The industrial core of the acquisition is Orbitworks, the joint venture that Marlan Space founded with Loft Orbital of San Francisco. Its plant in KEZAD, the industrial free zone around Khalifa Port, is the first commercial satellite manufacturing facility in the region. We described the site in detail when Altair-1 was flown to the United States in August 2026: 50,000 square feet of floor space, a 15,000 square foot ISO-class cleanroom, thermal vacuum chambers, vibration stands and electromagnetic test equipment, with serial production running since July 2025 on Loft Orbital’s Longbow platform. Marlan Space puts the site’s capacity at up to 50 satellites a year, each weighing up to 500 kg.

Altair is the flagship programme. It is a multi-sensor, AI-enabled Earth observation constellation that combines optical, hyperspectral, thermal, infrared and passive radio-frequency payloads with onboard processing, so that imagery is analysed in orbit rather than after download. According to Gulf News, the first Altair satellite has been completed and additional satellites are being assembled in Abu Dhabi. The schedule that Hamdullah Mohib gave AGBI in July 2026 runs as follows: Altair-1 launches from California on a SpaceX rocket in October 2026, four more satellites follow in the first quarter of 2027, and the remaining five are due by mid-2027, completing a constellation of 10. Customers and partners he named in the same interview include EDGE Group, the Abu Dhabi Maritime Academy, the Abu Dhabi Fund for Development and the French space agency.

The buyer: IHC’s 2026 in numbers

IHC is listed on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange, tops the Forbes Middle East ranking of the most valuable listed companies in the UAE for 2026 and operates through more than 1,300 subsidiaries. Its scale explains why an undisclosed price for 80% of a satellite start-up barely registers on its balance sheet. The National reported a market value of AED 860 billion on 6 May 2026, a first-quarter 2026 net profit of AED 8.1 billion, almost double the AED 4.1 billion of a year earlier, and a second-quarter net profit of AED 12.8 billion, up 220%. First-half net profit reached AED 17.9 billion on revenue of AED 64.9 billion, with the energy and mining segment contributing AED 12.3 billion and technology revenue rising 35.2%. In May 2026 Syed Basar Shueb told The National that IHC planned to invest up to USD 8 billion over the following six months in sectors including mining, energy and financial services; the group is also running an AED 5 billion share buyback, of which a first tranche of AED 1.8 billion has been executed.

The Marlan Space purchase extends a run of 2026 transactions. Khaleej Times lists a majority stake in First Women Bank Limited in Pakistan, a 70% stake in Peko Holdings and an increased shareholding in Invictus Investment Company; The National adds first-half stakes in OpenAI and SpaceX, a liquefied natural gas deal in Mexico and a USD 11.5 billion aluminium project with India’s Adani Group. Within the wider IHC ecosystem, ePointZero, a subsidiary of 2PointZero, agreed in August 2026 to buy 90% of Azura Power, an African power producer, also on undisclosed terms. Abu Dhabi’s listed companies as a group are having a strong year: as we reported from Kamco Invest data, the profits of Abu Dhabi-listed companies rose 41.8% in the second quarter of 2026.

RSC Ltd and SP LLC: what the entity names tell you

For readers who structure companies in the UAE, the legal suffixes in the announcement are informative. Marlan Holding carries the ending RSC Ltd, which marks a restricted scope company registered in Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM). Under the ADGM companies regulations this form is available only in limited cases: to a subsidiary of a group that files public consolidated accounts, to an entity formed by Emiri decree, or to a single family office. A restricted scope company is a private company limited by shares whose directors and shareholders are disclosed in full to the ADGM Registrar but do not appear on the public register, and it is not required to file or audit accounts. That profile is consistent with a holding backed by a family office, and it is the vehicle IHC is buying into.

International Tech Group SP LLC, the buyer, is a single-shareholder limited liability company on the Abu Dhabi mainland, the form used when a corporate parent holds 100% of the shares. The announcement says that the acquisition is subject to regulatory approvals without naming the regulators. Two frameworks matter for the target’s business. The UAE Space Agency licenses all space activities under Federal Decree-Law No. 46 of 2023, and on 27 July 2026 it opened a 90-day grace period, ending 25 October 2026, for every operator in the sector to regularise its permits, as we explained in our guide to the UAE Space Agency licensing deadline. Spectrum and orbital resources sit with the Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Authority (TDRA), the body that in August 2026 granted Starlink a 10-year licence.

Abu Dhabi already has one listed space company: Space42, whose first-half 2026 revenue of USD 260 million and contracted backlog of USD 6.3 billion we covered when ADX approved its share buyback. Marlan Space is a different kind of business, a manufacturer and constellation operator rather than a satellite communications provider, but the IHC deal places a second Abu Dhabi space group inside a listed structure.

What the deal means for business in the UAE

• A domestic supply chain is being built on purpose. Hamdullah Mohib told AGBI that about a thousand components go into each satellite and that Orbitworks wants more of them sourced in the region. Component makers, test laboratories, precision logistics providers and software firms registered in the UAE can compete for that work.
• Earth observation data becomes a local product. A 10-satellite constellation with optical, thermal, hyperspectral and RF sensors serves maritime monitoring, energy infrastructure, agriculture, insurance and logistics. Buyers of that data will be able to contract with a UAE-based operator instead of importing imagery.
• Licensing is no longer optional. Any company that operates space objects, resells satellite communications or manages space data has until 25 October 2026 to hold a UAE Space Agency licence. Ventures that plan to work with the Orbitworks ecosystem should check whether their activity falls inside the perimeter of Federal Decree-Law No. 46 of 2023.
• There is a domestic acquirer for deep-tech ventures. A group with AED 860 billion of market value and 1,300 subsidiaries buying 80% of a satellite manufacturer shows that exits in the UAE do not depend only on foreign strategic buyers. Founders who hold their shares through an ADGM company and run operations from a free zone such as KEZAD keep the option of selling to a local conglomerate.
• Hiring will follow the capital. Going from one finished satellite to ten in orbit by mid-2027 means engineers, mission operators and data scientists relocating to Abu Dhabi on employment visas, and a matching demand for housing, schools and services in the capital.

Checklist: entering the UAE space and deep-tech supply chain

• Map your activity against Federal Decree-Law No. 46 of 2023: operating space objects, satellite communications, space data management and launch support all require a UAE Space Agency licence.
• Choose the vehicle: an ADGM holding company for ownership and an operating licence in a free zone such as KEZAD or on the mainland for manufacturing, testing or services.
• Select licence activities that match what you will actually sell: component manufacturing, engineering consultancy, software development and data analytics carry different activity codes and approvals.
• Open a corporate bank account early: aerospace suppliers handle export-controlled components and international customers, and banks ask for source-of-funds and contract documentation before onboarding.
• Plan visas with the hiring calendar: employment visas for engineers and Golden Visas for qualifying specialists take weeks, not days.
• Register with TDRA where spectrum or ground stations are involved.
• Track the Orbitworks launch calendar: October 2026, the first quarter of 2027 and mid-2027 are the milestones around which contracts for components, insurance, logistics and data services will be signed.

How Atlant Capital can help

Atlant Capital works with founders and companies that want a base in the UAE technology economy. We register companies on the mainland and in free zones, including holding structures in ADGM and industrial or services licences in zones such as KEZAD, and we prepare the activity lists and approvals that manufacturing and engineering businesses need. We open corporate bank accounts and assemble the source-of-funds and contract files that banks request from aerospace and technology clients. We process employment and residence visas for relocating teams and Golden Visas for investors and qualifying specialists. Corporate tax registration, VAT and accounting are handled by licensed accounting and tax firms from our partner network. To discuss a specific plan, contact us.

Conclusion

IHC’s purchase of 80% of Marlan Holding, announced on 8 September 2026, gives an Abu Dhabi-listed conglomerate with AED 860 billion of market value control of the region’s only private satellite factory and of a 10-satellite AI constellation whose first spacecraft launches in October 2026. The price is undisclosed and the deal still needs regulatory approval, but the direction is clear: Abu Dhabi is moving space manufacturing from family-office backing into a listed group with up to USD 8 billion earmarked for deployment. For suppliers, data buyers and founders in the UAE, the practical steps are the same as in any regulated industrial sector: the right licence, the right structure and a bank account that can handle international contracts.

FAQ

What exactly is IHC buying in the Marlan Space deal?

The wholly owned IHC subsidiary International Tech Group SP LLC is acquiring an 80% stake in Marlan Holding RSC Ltd, the parent company of Marlan Space. The deal was announced on 8 September 2026, the price was not disclosed, and completion is subject to regulatory approvals. Through Marlan Holding, IHC gains majority control of Orbitworks, the satellite factory in KEZAD, and of the Altair Earth observation constellation.

What is Orbitworks and how many satellites can it build?

Orbitworks is a joint venture between Marlan Space of Abu Dhabi and Loft Orbital of San Francisco. It operates a 50,000 square foot satellite assembly, integration and testing facility in Khalifa Economic Zones Abu Dhabi with a 15,000 square foot ISO cleanroom, serial production since July 2025 and capacity for up to 50 satellites a year, each weighing up to 500 kg.

When will the Altair satellites launch?

Altair-1, the first of 10 satellites, has been completed and was flown to Los Angeles in August 2026 for a SpaceX launch scheduled for October 2026. According to the schedule given by Marlan Space CEO Hamdullah Mohib in July 2026, four more satellites follow in the first quarter of 2027 and the remaining five by mid-2027. Additional satellites are being assembled in Abu Dhabi.

How large is IHC and how much does it plan to invest?

IHC is an Abu Dhabi-listed conglomerate with more than 1,300 subsidiaries and a market value of AED 860 billion as of May 2026. Its second-quarter 2026 net profit was AED 12.8 billion, up 220%, and first-half net profit reached AED 17.9 billion. In May 2026 its CEO said the group planned to invest up to USD 8 billion over six months in mining, energy and financial services, alongside an AED 5 billion share buyback.