CEO of MDA Space MIKE GREENLEY – CDR ONE-ON-ONE

MDA Space is best known for designing and building the Canadarm for the Space Shuttle and Canadarm2 for the International Space Station. But there is much more to this company. MDA Space is a Canadian robotics, satellite systems, and geointelligence pioneer that has established itself as a trusted mission partner to the global space industry.

            Mike Greenley, CEO of MDA Space, recently sat down with CDR’s Ottawa Bureau Chief, James Careless, on the CDR Radio podcast to talk about his company and its many contributions to the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF). Here is an abridged and edited version of their conversation below. You can also listen to the full podcast here.

CDR: Please tell us about MDA Space.

Mike Greenley: MDA Space is Canada’s Space Company. It started in the 1960s, and we’re a pure play space company headquartered in Canada with global reach into the space market.

We support three of the main reasons why people go into space. The first is to observe the Earth. We develop, manufacture, own, and operate earth observation satellites. The second reason to go into space is to provide communications to the world. We build those satellites, especially for low Earth orbit constellations. And the third reason to go into space is to work there, to have space stations and exploration on the Moon or Mars. And so our robotics and space operations business is highly involved in living and working in space and providing the necessary infrastructure to be able to do so.

All of these things are connected to Canada in some way. Canada is an anchor customer of ours, and then we export globally around the world.

CURRENT CAF PROJECTS

CDR: MDA Space works extensively with the Canadian Armed Forces. Please tell us about some of the projects you’re doing with them.

Mike Greenley: Yes, we do a number of things in the areas that I just talked about for the Canadian Armed Forces or the Department of National Defence.

In the Earth observation domain, we own and operate RADARSAT-2 with synthetic aperture radar. We provide imagery and data services to the Canadian Department of National Defence (DND). We have provided them with ground station environments, Polar Epsilon 1 and Polar Epsilon 2, whereby they can receive imagery from the RADARSAT Constellation mission, whose satellites we built for the Government of Canada and of which DND is the primary user.

We provide DND with space domain awareness capability through the Sapphire satellite that we built for them. It is a space observation satellite that tracks the activities of satellites in orbit. We have a strong communications capability that at times is used in support of the Department of National Defence from space.

On the ground, MDA Space is the electronic warfare systems integrator on the Canadian River-class destroyer project. We also provide submarine command training on the east coast of Canada.

We’ve got a really strong history in drones and remotely piloted air systems for the CAF, such as providing the UAVs and operational support services to the Canadian forces in Afghanistan. We provided similar services to non-government organizations at the Ukraine/Russian border, leading up to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. This involved some coordination with a range of militaries, including Canada sharing in that information.

We’ve recently won work on the RPAS (remotely piloted aircraft systems) project team with Canada to deliver those next generation uncrewed air vehicles. And we just won the Canadian Navy ISTAR project to provide remotely piloted air systems to Canadian ships. So there are a wide range of services and technologies that we’re providing to the Department of National Defence and the Canadian Armed Forces.

INCREASED DEFENCE SPENDING

CDR: What does Canada’s renewed commitment to defence spending mean for MDA Space?

Mike Greenley: In the space side of the house, it is a tremendous opportunity. As Canada moves to increase the capability of the Canadian Armed Forces and have a higher level of sovereignty and security and economic independence, we need to look at the Canadian defence industrial base—especially where there are opportunities for Canadian prime contractors like MDA Space and our Canadian-developed technologies to be made available to the Canadian military. As one of the few Canadian-headquartered space and defence companies, we offer a great opportunity to partner with Canada moving forward. As that spending increases, there will be more and more things we can do with the Canadian Forces

CDR: Speaking of spending, how do you think MDA space can help Canada reach its 5% GDP defence spending goal in a meaningful and relevant way?

Mike Greenley: The word “relevant” is super important. I can’t even emphasize how important that is.

The meaningful thing to me has to do with relevant capability and speed. If you look at the Canadian Armed Forces and what we need to do to have a sovereign defence capability over Canada, we have to care about a very large country. We have to care about maritime approaches on three coastlines. We have to care about really taking the lead in the Arctic for North America and our allies and then having a strong defence capability for the rest of the world.

Space plays a tremendous role in all of that, including contributions to large capabilities such as the Golden Dome continental missile defence system. Space will be a tremendous player in all of that, and MDA Space offers Canada’s largest capability to fulfill these needs.

READ: Why Joining Golden Dome is a Strategic Imperative

In terms of Arctic sovereignty and having communication networks in that region, our satellites and space-based communications systems are one of the most efficient means of having strong and pervasive communications throughout the Arctic.

In addition, in terms of allied relevant capability, I’m always concerned that when a country increases defence spending, there are things that are in its way such as personnel requirements. We need more personnel to be able to buy systems. We need more personnel to operate those systems. We need more personnel to maintain those systems. So our ability to expand our military and add increasing levels of allied relevant military capability is going to be limited by a personnel expansion issue.

I know that the CAF is working to solve their personnel shortage and that they will accomplish their task, but it’ll take time. However, it is worth noting that, in space, you don’t have personnel issues. There are no operators required on space assets, so there is no maintenance required on space assets. Plus, Canada can get into very strong commercial relationships whereby the Canadian military can increase their capabilities by buying commercial Earth observation services from companies like MDA space. They could also buy communication services from space-based networks like Telesat Lightspeed in Canada. MDA Space builds all of those satellites.

As such, space represents a very strategic asset for the Canadian Armed Forces as it expands its capability based on its mission, especially since our allies would appreciate it if Canada had an expanded space capability.

As well, there’ll be a new area that comes into play that I call “Counter Space”. Some people call them “guard satellites”, but whatever you call them, they’ll be used to protect critical space-based assets from attack. We’ve seen a number of nations recently—Japan and India in 2025 plus other countries—announce guard satellite projects. These include putting up satellites that can maneuver and get between satellites, when another nation’s spacecraft might be coming up to one of your satellites and getting a little bit too close and poking around a little bit too much. You want to get between that intruder and protect your own satellite, or have capabilities that you could approach it and disable it or grab hold of it and do something with it.

We call that “proximity operations in satellites”. You can approach something that you’ve never met before, see it, engage with it and do things with it.

Canada has unique world-leading capabilities in that area. We have world-leading proximity operations sensors that we developed and delivered for years in the international market using technologies like LIDAR. And then MDA Space happens to be the most experienced in the world of space-based robotics, to grab hold of things in space using the Canadarm on a hundred shuttle missions, Canadarm2 on the ISS, and Canadarm3 as we head towards space station operations in orbit around the Moon.

As a result, Canada’s proximity operations capabilities are unique in the world, offering Canada the opportunity to have a leadership role in counterspace spacecraft and counterspace military operations. Such a new capability would be important for Canada, and also be a very strategic allied relevant capability as well.

SUPPORT FROM GOVERNMENT

CDR: Finally, what do you think the Canadian government can be doing to help MDA Space and others in the Canadian defence sector do more in space, prosper more in space, export more in space and create more jobs?

Mike Greenley: That dialogue is absolutely on the table. Over the last three or four months, a week does not go by where I’m not on a panel talking about increased defence spending, how to have a defence industrial strategy, how the government can engage more and properly with industry, and how can Canada, through increased defence spending, buy more Canadian goods and services.

            That being said, everyone’s engaged in the same pattern of conversation on this topic. We need to be able to ensure that Canada follows through on its commitment so that as it increases defence spending, it is engaging with Canadian defence companies. That means that when we have Canadian companies like MDA Space with the capability to engage with Ottawa directly right from the start to develop the program together and faster than we have historically before, we do so. Where we don’t have the full capabilities to work with Canadian firms from the outset, Ottawa works with Canada’s defence sector to develop those capabilities down the road through domestic investment and R&D.

            In doing this, there is a historical barrier that must be overcome, which is to ensure that our R&D and innovation projects actually cross the line into operational systems. All of them won’t, but some of them need to. We’ve had trouble with that in the past in Canada. So there’s a lot of dialogue across the country to make sure that all of our various mechanisms and forums to provide R&D funding for the next generation of technology are thinking for military capabilities, and have the opportunity to transition into operational services without getting caught up in bureaucratic red tape or inefficient perceptions about global competition requirements or the like.

To make all of this happen, there’s a lot of culture change that has to occur in Ottawa. It’s mostly going to take resolve, because culture change can only happen with resolve and commitment, and that’s what we all need to continue to see.

James Careless is CDR’s Ottawa Bureau Chief