Telesat Canada (Telesat) welcomes the Government of Ontario’s Budget 2018 commitment to support an investment of up to $20 million towards Telesat’s Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite constellation, now in development. The Budget 2018 commitment is a key component of Ontario’s goal of providing high performing broadband communications to rural communities throughout the province.
Telesat is developing a global LEO constellation that will revolutionize broadband communications services. Telesat’s LEO constellation will deliver high performing, cost-effective, fiber-like broadband connectivity anywhere in the world – including all of Ontario’s urban, rural, remote and northern communities – for business, government, and individual users. The initial constellation will consist of approximately 120 satellites by 2021 and Telesat is evaluating options to expand its system beyond this initial configuration. Telesat successfully launched its first LEO satellite earlier this year and will soon be conducting trials with a number of customers around the world to validate certain key features of its constellation. (For more information on Telesat’s LEO satellite system, please visit: www.telesat.com/services/leo)
“The provincial government’s support of Telesat’s LEO satellite technology in its 2018 Budget is an important step to help solve the rural broadband challenge in Ontario,” said Dan Goldberg, Telesat’s President and CEO. “We look forward to working with the Government of Ontario to ensure the delivery of 24×7, secure, high-speed broadband services essential to the well being of Ontarians. Telesat’s innovative LEO constellation will enable meaningful civic engagement, inclusive growth, economic development, and access to government and public services – regardless of where people live and work in the province.”
About Telesat (www.telesat.com)
Telesat is a leading global satellite operator, providing reliable and secure satellite- delivered communications solutions worldwide to broadcast, telecom, corporate and government customers. Headquartered in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, the company’s state-of-the-art fleet consists of 15 GEO satellites, the Canadian payload on ViaSat-1 and one Phase 1 LEO satellite which is the start of Telesat’s planned global LEO satellite constellation that will offer low latency, high throughput broadband services. An additional two GEO satellites are under construction with launches planned for mid-2018. Telesat is also a leading technical consultant providing high value expertise and support to satellite operators, insurers and other industry participants on a global basis. Privately held, Telesat’s principal shareholders are Canada’s Public Sector Pension Investment Board and Loral Space & Communications Inc. (NASDAQ: LORL).
