Intelsat today announced a strategic advance in its service capabilities through an expanded partnership with Eutelsat Group related to that company’s OneWeb low-earth orbit (LEO) constellation. The deal is a significant development for multi-orbit satellite connectivity solutions and positions Intelsat at the forefront of the next wave in global connectivity.

The arrangement provides a commitment of $250 million for LEO service over the first six years, with an option for an additional $250 million. This agreement will increase and further integrate LEO capabilities into Intelsat’s solutions offerings across its current and future customer base.

“We’ve been partnering with Eutelsat for quite some time now, leveraging its OneWeb LEO constellation to offer a multi-orbit solution, primarily in commercial aviation,” said Dave Wajsgras, CEO of Intelsat. “We’re now seeing so many additional opportunities for customers to benefit from multi-orbit solutions. We believe it’s in Intelsat’s interests, Eutelsat’s interests, and our customers’ interests for us to expand the partnership that’s already in place – one that is working well and has strong demand.”

As part of the partnership, Intelsat will cooperate with Eutelsat in the development of its Next Generation OneWeb constellation – providing direct design and functionality input to help ensure that the new constellation will have the capabilities to meet real-world customer needs going forward.

Eva Berneke, Chief Executive Officer of Eutelsat Group, said, “This expanded partnership with Intelsat represents a strong vote of confidence in the capabilities of the OneWeb constellation, today and well into the future, and it showcases the necessity in today’s world for major satellite operators to have the ability to offer multi-orbit solutions to their customers.”

Intelsat’s Wajsgras added, “Our team is convinced that pairing Intelsat’s experience and our GEO and terrestrial network with the capabilities we will access via Eutelsat Group’s OneWeb LEO network will enable Intelsat to deliver the absolute best and most comprehensive customer solutions supporting networks, government and mobility sectors and fueling our robust growth trajectory.”