UK earmarks £92 million for research into construction of Galileo alternative

The British government is allocating £92 million to design an alternative to the European Galileo satellite system. Because the UK is in danger of being left out due to Brexit, the country is considering developing its own system.

British Prime Minister Theresa May wants to spend the 92 million pounds, converted about 101 million euros, for the initial research needed to come up with an alternative to the European Galileo, reports The Guardian. This money comes from a £3bn pot, which has been set aside in preparation for any problems arising from Brexit. This is an eighteen-month study in which British companies will look at feasibility, among other things.

May says her government will abandon this plan if the European Union decides to work closely with the UK again on the Galileo project. The British Prime Minister says that if the latter does not happen, the United Kingdom will develop its own alternative satellite positioning system. May emphasizes that this is not an empty threat to achieve certain goals during negotiations.

The European Commission has already started excluding British companies from the Galileo project. As a result, they have no or reduced access to some of the future work for Galileo. This includes the sensitive security information of Galileo. The United Kingdom contributed 1.2 billion euros of the total of ten billion euros to the project.

In May, some British academics indicated that it would be unwise for the United Kingdom to develop its own positioning system. They point to the enormous costs associated with developing their own British alternative.