Globalstar, Inc. (Nasdaq:GSAT), a leading provider of mobile satellite voice and data services to businesses, government, and consumers, today announced it has taken delivery of the first three second-generation satellites from manufacturer Thales Alenia Space. Globalstar officials authorized acceptance of the new satellites at the Thales Alenia Space satellite manufacturing facility in Rome. The three new satellites will be immediately shipped to the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. There, combined with three additional satellites to be delivered later this month, they will undergo preparations and testing for an October launch using the highly reliable Soyuz launch vehicle.
“Today’s satellite delivery represents another tremendous milestone achievement and is the culmination of more than five years of planning and work by Globalstar and our satellite manufacturer Thales Alenia Space,” said Tony Navarra, President, Global Operations for Globalstar, Inc. “Delivery of these satellites would not have been possible without the diligent efforts of all our technical, financing and insurance partners. I would also like to specifically acknowledge the tireless work and commitment of all of our highly skilled employees around the world, as well as those at Thales Alenia Space and Arianespace, who helped make today’s announcement a reality.
“Once our new constellation is fully deployed we will once again reliably provide the world’s finest quality mobile satellite voice and fastest mobile satellite data services to commercial and government customers in more than 120 countries. Combined with our affordable and award-winning suite of consumer retail SPOT products we will be uniquely positioned to offer the world’s most extensive lineup of high quality mobile satellite services to the broadest range of customers around the globe.”
“The delivery of the first satellites in the constellation is a major milestone for both Thales Alenia Space and our customer Globalstar,” said Emmanuel Grave, head of telecommunications at Thales Alenia Space. “It reflects the close relationship that all our teams have developed throughout this program. With the delivery of the next three satellites at the end of August, and the launch of the first batch in the fall, Globalstar Second Generation will be entering service. We are very proud of our work on this program, and delighted to be able to ensure the satisfaction of our customer Globalstar.”
A total of four launches carrying six satellites each will be conducted by launch services provider Arianespace using the Soyuz which has been used to successfully launch Globalstar satellites on eight previous occasions. The 24 new second-generation satellites will be integrated with the eight first-generation satellites that were launched in 2007. The new constellation secures Globalstar’s space segment through beyond 2025.
Globalstar expects to be the first global mobile satellite voice and data company to deliver and deploy a LEO second-generation satellite constellation. Once the new Globalstar satellites are in operational orbit, the most immediate impact will be on those customers who use the Company’s voice and duplex data services. With each of the first four launches, these customers can expect a progressive return to the high reliability and service quality enjoyed before 2007.
New Products and Service Offerings
Once fully deployed the advanced second-generation constellation and next-generation ground network are designed to provide Globalstar customers with increased data speeds of up to 256 kbps in a flexible Internet protocol multimedia subsystem (IMS) configuration. Products and services supported are expected to include: push-to-talk and multicasting, advanced messaging capabilities such as multimedia messaging or MMS, mobile video, geo-location services, multi-band and multi-mode handsets, and data devices with GPS integration.
In 2006 Globalstar contracted Thales Alenia Space for the design, manufacture and delivery of its second-generation constellation low Earth orbit (LEO) satellites. The remaining satellites are now under construction at various Thales Alenia Space facilities in France and Italy. The payloads are built in Toulouse; the thermal subsystems and structures in Cannes; part of the side panels in Turin; several payload electronics units are developed and manufactured in L’Aquila; the L-band antennas are produced in Rome and the onboard computer (OBPE) and part of the GPS receiver in Milan. Thales Alenia Space is also responsible for launch support services. Each second-generation Globalstar satellite weighs approximately 700 kg, offers end-of-life power of 1.7 kW, is fitted with 16 transponders from C- to S-band, and 16 receivers from L- to C-band. Each satellite has a design life of 15 years.
About Globalstar, Inc.
With over 400,000 subscribers, Globalstar is the world’s largest provider of mobile satellite voice and data services. Globalstar offers these services to commercial customers and recreational consumers in more than 120 countries around the world. The Company’s products include mobile and fixed satellite telephones, simplex and duplex satellite data modems and flexible service packages. Many land based and maritime industries benefit from Globalstar with increased productivity from remote areas beyond cellular and landline service. Global customer segments include: oil and gas, government, mining, forestry, commercial fishing, utilities, military, transportation, heavy construction, emergency preparedness, and business continuity as well as individual recreational users. Globalstar data solutions are ideal for various asset and personal tracking, data monitoring and SCADA applications.
For more information regarding Globalstar, please visit the Globalstar website at www.globalstar.com.
