With six satellites, SES’s second-generation medium earth orbit system will be ready to provide high-performance connectivity services around the globe from early Q2 2024.

SES announced that two additional O3b mPOWER satellites were successfully launched into space by a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida, United States, at 4:08pm local time. With the fifth and sixth O3b mPOWER satellites launched, the system completes the six medium earth orbit (MEO) satellites required to offer high-performance network services delivering high throughput, predictable low latency, unique flexibility and service availability.

Last month, SES announced it will add to the constellation two more satellites built by Boeing, bringing the total number of O3b mPOWER satellites to 13. The additional investment is expected to be covered within SES’s existing committed CapEx envelope. The first four O3b mPOWER satellites launched in the last year have arrived at their target orbital position and are undergoing in-orbit checks, including a series of system validation tests encompassing both space and ground components.

In 2023 alone, SES has rolled out and tested more than 160 O3b mPOWER terminals over the existing O3b constellation to serve mobility, telecom, government, and enterprise customers.

“With the fifth and sixth O3b mPOWER satellites launched and going operational in the next few months, we are gearing up to deliver the high-performance connectivity services our customers need. By building resiliency into the network, we are confident our customers will be able to depend on us to deliver the reliable and secure connectivity required to run their operations,” said Ruy Pinto, CEO of SES.

O3b mPOWER commercial service is expected to begin during the second quarter of 2024.