Tata group's Nelco, Eutelsat tie up for OneWeb LEO satellite connectivity

Tata group company Nelco has signed an agreement with French satellite services provider Eutelsat to deliver OneWeb low earth orbit (LEO) satellite connectivity services across India, said the two companies.

 

According to the agreement, Nelco will partner OneWeb India Communications to provide secure, low-latency LEO connectivity to customers in the country.

 

OneWeb India Communications is the domestic entity for Eutelsat’s India operations.

 

“Service coverage will extend across India’s borders, territorial waters, and remote regions, supporting a wide range of secure government and enterprise applications. These capabilities will strengthen India’s digital infrastructure and national security while ensuring reliable connectivity in underserved areas,” Nelco said in a statement.

 

These services will be offered to users as soon as OneWeb’s LEO commercial operation in India begins, Nelco said.

 

“This partnership marks a significant step in enabling reliable, secure, and high-speed communication solutions based on LEO services for critical sectors across land, sea, and air. It reflects our strategy to provide comprehensive multi-orbit satellite connectivity services for advancing India’s digital ecosystem and supporting the country's strategic communication needs,”

 

said PJ Nath, managing director (MD) and chief executive officer (CEO) of Nelco.

 

OneWeb, a satellite services company backed by Bharti Enterprises, merged its operations with Eutelsat in 2023. This became the second-largest satellite operator globally, with 669 satellites in orbit. 

  In July this year, the British government announced it would invest euro 163 million in Eutelsat through a reserved capital increase (RCI). This would expand the total amount planned to be raised by the French satellite services provider to euro 1.5 billion. Bharti Space Limited had then stated that it would also increase its investment commitment to euro 150 million.  

Earlier in May, the Centre had cleared Elon Musk’s Starlink licence to operate satellite internet services in India, over two years after the US firm applied for it.

 

Starlink provides satellite communications (satcom) services in over 125 countries through a constellation of more than 7,600 LEO satellites operated by SpaceX, the American spacecraft manufacturer owned by Musk.