Orbcomm said Nov. 15 it commissioned a new gateway earth station in Almaty, Kazakhstan. The new station, which will allow Orbcomm to expand services into parts of China, Russia and the Middle East, is scheduled to be fully operational by Dec. 1.

Gateway earth stations are the terrestrial links to the Orbcomm network of low-earth orbit satellites. This new gateway provides a 1,500-mile coverage radius, enabling Orbcomm to pursue regulatory approvals to launch service.

Leosat LLC, the Orbcomm representative in Kazakhstan, has started marketing satellite data services to transportation, oil, gas, utility and government customers in Kazakhstan.