OneWeb performs successful field trials in rural Kazakhstan

13 September 2022

OneWeb has performed a series of successful field trials of its low Earth orbit (LEO) based broadband in rural areas of Kazakhstan.

The trials follow the first-ever public demonstration of LEO satellites capabilities within the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), performed by OneWeb during the Digital Bridge Forum in October 2021, and reflects the company’s continued commitment to Kazakhstan and the Central Asia markets. Demonstrations commenced on 15 August 2022 at the National Space Centre in Nur-Sultan, before further field tests were conducted in the remote villages of Akmolinskaya Province.

OneWeb’s high-performance network demonstrated how the company can deliver connectivity solutions across remote areas of Northern Kazakhstan, using electronically steered user terminals from Kymeta, a world leading company for flat panel antennas and a longstanding technology partner for OneWeb’s LEO network.

Today’s announcement follows the longstanding partnership between OneWeb and the Government of Kazakhstan, which began in 2020 to support Kazakhstan’s ambition to digitise its economy and become a pioneer of the latest satellite communications technologies. OneWeb signed a Memorandum of Understanding in collaboration with the Government and local partners in April 2021, which included plans to build a ground station in the country to provide connectivity to the Central Asia region.

The service trials were performed using temporary hub antennas installed at the National Space Centre, and the Ku-band spectrum satellite user terminal Kymeta installed on the rooftop of a stationary four wheel-drive vehicle. During the demonstration, the system showed high throughput and low-latency connectivity allowing multiple uses simultaneously: including video conference calling, content streaming and cloud-based applications.

The demonstration tests were carried out by OneWeb Kazakhstan Ltd., OneWeb’s local entity, which is registered at the Astana International Financial Centre. The Ministry of Digital Development, Innovation and Aerospace Industry provided support, alongside the Republican Centre for Space Communications JSC and national company Kazakhstan Gharysh Sapary.

Neil Masterson, Chief Executive Officer at OneWeb, said: “These successful field trials demonstrate the opportunity that OneWeb’s high-speed, low latency capabilities – alongside Kymeta’s pioneering user terminals – provide to improve connectivity across rural and remote parts of Kazakhstan and Central Asia. Bridging the digital divide is a mission OneWeb shares with the Government of Kazakhstan, and we look forward to collaborating further with our partners in the country as we activate our global coverage solutions.”