Rendering of Telesat’s Lightspeed LEO constellation. Photo: Telesat

Avanti Communications signed an agreement with Telesat to test and develop Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) services. Avanti plans to incorporate Telesat’s services into its network to improve its broadband connectivity for customers. 

This is Avanti’s first low-latency LEO constellation agreement. The collaboration will serve the growing connectivity demands of Avanti’s customers once the Telesat Lightspeed constellation is operational in 2027. Telesat’s global network will be composed of 198 LEO satellites and on-ground networks, and MDA is building the constellation. 

 “The Telesat Lightspeed service will specifically target our enterprise and government customers, enabling us to deliver on our commitment to cater to the most complex requirements while maintaining the high performance, reliability, and quality of service our customers expect,” said Toby Robinson, Avanti chief of strategy and business development.

Additionally, under the agreement, Telesat will explore combining Avanti’s landing stations, points of presence (PoPs), terrestrial connectivity, site hosting, and management services as part of its global terrestrial infrastructure. 

“Integration of Avanti’s EMEA terrestrial infrastructure into the Telesat Lightspeed network provides promising synergies and optimizations for both organizations,” said Glenn Katz, chief commercial officer at Telesat. 

This collaboration is part of Avanti’s multi-orbit strategy the company outlined in December 2023.