Virtus Solis signs 20-year deal for 100 MW of orbital solar power

(SpaceEnergy) Virtus Solis has signed a 20-year power purchase agreement to supply Brae Systems with 100 MW of continuous space-based solar power, with an option to expand to 250 MW.

The companies said the initial contracted supply would deliver 876,000 MWh annually to Brae's planned subsea computing infrastructure through a dedicated terrestrial receiving station in Illinois.

Brae can increase contracted capacity to 250 MW, equivalent to 2.19m MWh annually, within three years of the start of commercial operations. Virtus Solis described the agreement as a multi-billion-dollar lifetime gross contract commitment but did not disclose a firm start date for power deliveries.

Virtus Solis is developing modular orbital solar arrays designed to transmit energy to Earth using radio-frequency power beaming. Its architecture uses interconnected satellite tiles carrying solar cells, power electronics and phased-array antennas.

The company said its next public technical demonstration is planned for March 2027 and will test wireless power-transfer efficiency. Virtus Solis is also working under a USD 2m corporate development agreement with the US Department of Energy's ARPA-E on power electronics for orbital generation.

Founder and chief executive John Bucknell said the agreement represented an "inflection point" for space solar power and high-performance computing.