Tuvalu
Telecommunications
Corporation
signs five year
satellite
broadband deal
with Kacific
9 June 2014
Kacific
Broadband
Satellites has
signed a five
year agreement
with Tuvalu
Telecommunications
Corporation
(TTC) to provide
high speed
bandwidth to the
company and the
people of
Tuvalu. The
multi-million
dollar service
agreement is the
first that
Kacific has
signed with a
national
telecommunications
service
provider.
Using a single
dedicated beam
directed from
its Ka band High
Throughput
Satellite (HTS),
Kacific will
provide TTC with
increasing
levels of
capacity over
the period,
starting with
80Mbps and
ramping up to
150 Mbps after
four years.
Under the
agreement TTC
can, at its
discretion,
increase
bandwidth in
bursts of up to
50 percent at
any time,
meaning that in
year four
Kacific could
provide TCC with
up to 225 Mbps
of capacity. To
put this in
perspective,
today less than
20 Mbps of
capacity is
supplied to
Tuvalu.
The beam will
have a footprint
approximately
800-1000 km
wide, sufficient
to cover not
just the 26 km2
of land, but
most of Tuvalu’s
900,000 km2
exclusive
economic zone.
The Tuvalu beam
will be
optimised so
that all islands
in the group
will receive
sufficient
satellite power
for customers to
operate at high
throughput
speeds using
only a small
(75cm to 1.2m
diameter)
terminal.
Because TTC
committed to
Kacific at the
design stage of
the project, it
has been able to
secure a high
bandwidth, high
power dedicated
beam.
Since Kacific is
not a ‘one size
fits all’
satellite, its
team will now
customise its
satellite design
and the Tuvalu
beam to ensure
that the
required level
of service and
future bandwidth
growth can be
sustained
throughout the
Tuvalu island
group.
“This
agreement will
have an
explosive effect
on
telecommunications
services in
Tuvalu,” says
TTC’s CEO,
Simeti Lopati.
“It will
multiply what
Tuvaluans have
today in terms
of bandwidth and
disseminated
coverage by a
factor of 15
times or more.
That will in
turn spur
economic growth
and lead to
improvements in
all sectors, and
in particular
education and
health, as
schools and
medical clinics
on outer islands
are currently
without
internet.
Tuvalu is a
sovereign state
comprising nine
islands situated
midway between
Hawaii and
Australia. Four
reef islands
rise from the
sea bed; the
other five are
coral atolls. It
has a population
of around 10,000
and won
independence
from the United
Kingdom in 1978.
The nation faces
particularly
onerous
environmental
and economic
challenges.
Because of their
relatively low
elevation (no
point on Tuvalu
is more than 4.5
metres above sea
level), its
islands are
vulnerable to
the effects of
tropical
cyclones, spring
tides and future
rises in sea
levels.
It also
faces increasing
isolation and
economic
disadvantage in
a world where
connectivity is
largely taken
for granted. For
example there
are currently no
ATMs on Tuvalu.
The country
currently has
only expensive,
congested low
speed internet
connectivity.
That constrains
innovation and
economic
development,
which means
businesses are
unable to afford
broadband
connectivity,
even were it
available.
“Kacific’s
services will
undoubtedly be a
game changer for
the entire
nation,” said
Lopati.
“This agreement
will see a new
generation
satellite
operator provide
an affordable,
universally
accessible
national
broadband
service to one
of the smallest,
least populous
nations on
earth,” says
Kacific CEO,
Christian
Patouraux. “It
is testimony to
both the value
of Kacific’s
commercial
proposition and
the vision of
TTC. It will
improve
commerce,
encourage
innovation,
reduce gender
inequality,
improve social
cohesion and
help secure this
small, isolated
country against
the many
environmental
threats it
faces.
“By making a
direct
high-speed
internet
connection
available to
every government
agency,
institution,
business and
family in the
footprint area
it will also
place Tuvalu in
a leadership
position amongst
Pacific nations
in terms of
providing
universal
broadband
access.”
Kacific expects
to launch its
Kacific-1
satellite by
late 2016 or
early 2017 and
to provide
operational
service shortly
thereafter. From
the moment the
satellite is
commissioned,
all Tuvaluans
will be able to
receive coverage
using only a
small, low cost
dish antenna.
Overnight
every school,
village, clinic,
shop, business
and dwelling in
the country will
have access to a
fast,
affordable,
national
broadband
network.
