Telesat is a Canadian satellite communications company and operator, providing connectivity solutions to telecom, government, and enterprise clients globally. They are currently developing Telesat Lightspeed, a low Earth orbit (LEO) constellation of 198 satellites designed for high-speed, low-latency broadband services. Telesat partners with companies like MDA Space, Orange, and Intellian for satellite manufacturing, terrestrial infrastructure, and user terminals. The company aims to begin launching satellites in 2026, with the constellation fully operational by 2027.
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Telesat has an agreement with SatixFy that provides Telesat early access to SatixFy’s second-generation Sx3099 modem chip.
Telesat Lightspeed is Telesat’s LEO satellite network.
SatixFy and Telesat will perform a six-month requirements verification program focused on the development and testing of evaluation boards and prototype modem units.
The advanced capabilities of the Sx3099 modem chip meet enterprise-grade service delivery requirements of the Telesat Lightspeed network.
Telesat selected Canadian space technology company MDA to manufacture the phased array antennas for the Lightspeed satellites in Québec.
Telesat will invest $1,600,000,000 into Québec both directly and through its supply chain for the Lightspeed program.
Telesat completed a $600,000,000 partnership with the Government of Canada for Telesat Lightspeed.
The Government of Québec’s $400,000,000 investment into Telesat Lightspeed will consist of $200,000,000 in preferred equity and a $200,000,000 loan.
Telesat completed a C$600,000,000 partnership with the Government of Canada to support Telesat Lightspeed and bridge Canada’s digital divide.
Telesat previously focused on providing communications from geostationary satellites prior to pursuing the Lightspeed low-Earth orbit constellation.
Telesat selected Canadian space technology company MDA to manufacture the phased array antennas for the Lightspeed satellites.
The Government of Canada agreed in November to pay Telesat 600 million Canadian dollars over 10 years to provide subsidized broadband internet services to rural Canadian communities.
A final agreement implementing the MOU between Telesat and the Government of Québec is expected to be completed in the coming months.
Gilat demonstrated record performance in the first-ever 0.005 kg connectivity over Telesat’s Phase-1 LEO on two occasions in 2019.
The Quebec government will invest 400 million Canadian dollars (US$315,500,000) in Telesat’s Lightspeed low-Earth orbit communications network.
The Telesat Lightspeed program will create 600 high-paying STEM jobs.
Telesat selected Thales Alenia Space to manufacture 298 Lightspeed satellites to provide Wi‑Fi to ships, aircraft, businesses, and government customers from low Earth orbit.
Telesat will invest C$1,600,000,000 into Québec, both directly and through its supply chain, which will include a significant portion of Lightspeed manufacturing and operations.
The Quebec government will obtain 200 million Canadian dollars in preferred Telesat equity and provide a 200 million Canadian dollar loan to Telesat as part of the Lightspeed agreement.
The Telesat Lightspeed LEO fleet contract announced on 2021-02-09 will bring an additional 15,000 Gb/s of bandwidth when it goes fully live around the 2023 to 2024 timeframe.