Ottawa, Ontario-based satcom provider Telesat is planning to deliver a global low Earth orbit service in 2027 with its 198-satellite Lightspeed constellation.
The Canadian government, which Telesat (NASDAQ: TSAT / TSX:TSAT) announced is contributing CA$2 billion ($1.6 billion) to Lightspeed’s $3.5 billion cost, will benefit from the large satellite network, Michele Beck, senior vice president for Canadian sales at Telesat, tells Connectivity Business News in the newest episode of “The Dish” podcast.
“The Lightspeed constellation is probably the most ambitious program that Telesat has undertaken in its history,” Beck says. “But it’s also one of the largest space programs in Canada.” Canadian manufacturer MDA Space is building the satellites, she says.
Development of the Lightspeed constellation is stimulating Canada’s economy in a number of ways, Beck says.
“It has industrial benefits where it’s creating jobs across the country,” Beck says, adding that Lightspeed services will bring connectivity throughout Canada, including to government agencies and people in underserved areas.
“The revenues are actually coming back to Canada, so it’s a very strategic opportunity for the government of Canada,” she says.
In addition to funding nearly half of Lightspeed’s development, the Canadian government is contributing $438.6 million toward a capacity pool, which is a designated large amount of capacity agreed upon by the government of Canada and Telesat, Beck tells CBN.
The subsidized capacity allows Telesat to provide low-cost, commercial rates for mobile network operators and internet service providers that deploy user terminals approved by Telesat, providing connectivity to areas that can’t be reached by fiber cables, she says.
Hear how low rates help internet service providers “connect these communities affordably and extend connectivity where otherwise it would be uneconomic to do so,” according to Beck in this episode of “The Dish.”