The NILESAT 301 communications satellite, built by Thales Alenia Space, a joint venture between Thales (67%) and Leonardo (33%) for the Egyptian operator NILESAT, was successfully launched this week from Cape Canaveral launch pad, Florida (USA), on board of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. Utilising a a powerful Ku-band mission, NILESAT 301 is expected to...
According to the World Association of Telephone Operators, 206 million inhabitants of Sub-Saharan Africa were not covered at all by a mobile network in 2020. The Rwandan government wants to bet on satellite to accelerate penetration telecom services. The Rwanda Space Agency (RSA) signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Global Satellite Operators Association (GSOA)...
Avanti Communications, which provides satellite data communications services in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and Free Senegal have signed a five-year partnership agreement under which Free will build and host a new satellite gateway in the country for Avanti’s HYLAS 4 Ka-band satellite. The gateway will extend HYLAS 4’s coverage to Senegal and the neighbouring West African countries...
Driven by the population’s need for broadband, the satellite connectivity segment continues to develop in Nigeria. Viasat, which obtained the approval of the authorities last year to start its activities in the country, is giving itself the weapons to impose itself on this very disputed market. The satellite telecom services operator Viasat will rely on the...
Over the past four years, satellite has become a popular alternative for operators to connect remote communities. But it also has limitations. AST SpaceMobile offers a solution to overcome these obstacles. French telecoms group Orange on Friday (March 25th) signed a non-binding memorandum of understanding with AST SpaceMobile to test its space-based broadband cellular network in one...
Competition in the African telecoms market is encouraging operators to turn more and more to rural areas to make a difference. Satellite telecommunications service providers, who see it as a business opportunity, are increasing their investments in this direction. Konnect Broadband Tanzania Limited, a subsidiary of the Eutelsat group, which specializes in providing Internet services by...
Safaricom has signed a multi-year contract with Intelsat to modernise its network and expand LTE coverage to more subscribers across the whole country. Satellite fleet and connectivity infrastructure provider Intelsat will supply Safaricom with both cellular backhaul over satellite and enterprise connectivity services. According to the companies, the availability of Safaricom LTE service everywhere will...
Clear Blue Technologies International announced that it has entered a memorandum of understanding with iSat Africa to be its preferred partner for solar off-grid power. The MoU calls for Clear Blue to provide a minimum of 300 off-grid, remote power systems for satellite and cell phone services in four countries in Africa, to be ordered...
Orange Mali SA has selected Intelsat to deliver 3G and 4G connectivity to remote areas of Mali. “Intelsat is on a mission to deliver high-quality, dependable connectivity to people around the world, regardless of where they live,” said Brian Jakins, general manager and vice president of networks at Intelsat. “But for people in remote and...
Satellite operator Telesat and pan-African tech group Liquid Intelligent Technologies has announced a strategic cooperation agreement to explore reciprocal go-to-market strategies to bring Telesat Lightspeed Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite services to Africa. As part of the agreement, the companies will closely collaborate on the commercial and technical aspects of integrating the Telesat Lightspeed enterprise-grade,...
