Antrix loses Ninth Circuit bid to block $562.5 million Devas award
Antrix Corporation · Devas Multimedia
A US appeals court kept Devas' $562.5 million award against ISRO's Antrix alive; with interest it now tops $2 billion.
what happened
The US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit affirmed that American courts have jurisdiction over Antrix Corporation, ISRO's commercial arm, in Devas Multimedia's bid to enforce a $562.5 million 2015 arbitration award over a 2005 satellite-spectrum lease Antrix terminated in 2011. The panel rejected Antrix's jurisdictional defenses and sent the case back to district court to weigh the effect of Indian courts having separately set the award aside. With accrued interest the claim now exceeds $2 billion, according to Devas's counsel Baker Botts.
why it matters
The ruling keeps one of the largest outstanding financial claims against an Indian government space entity alive, with potential liability that could weigh on Antrix's and ISRO's finances and complicate future commercial spectrum or satellite dealings. It is also a rare instance of a US court asserting jurisdiction over a wholly state-owned foreign space agency's commercial arm, a precedent other cross-border satellite disputes may cite.
for who
Satellite operators and investors weighing cross-border spectrum deals with state space agencies
signal-to-noise
quick facts
- Companies
- Antrix Corporation, Devas Multimedia
- Category
- financial
- Impact
- notable
- SNR
- 4 / 5
- Event date
- 2026-08-14
- Published
- 2026-08-15 17:25 UTC