Chennai: European satellite communications leader Eutelsat and Tata Group’s Nelco Ltd have signed an agreement to deliver OneWeb low earth orbit (LEO) satellite connectivity across India.
In a statement released yesterday, Eutelsat Group said OneWeb India Communications—the Indian subsidiary of Eutelsat—will collaborate with Nelco to provide secure, low-latency LEO connectivity for customers on land, at sea, and in the air.
The service coverage will extend across India’s borders, territorial waters, and remote regions, enabling 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 and hard-to-reach areas.
Nelco is well geared to offer these services to its customers as soon as the OneWeb LEO services become commercially operational in the country, the statement noted.
Neha Idnani, Regional Vice President for APAC, Eutelsat and Director of OneWeb India said the agreement strengthens the group’s strategic footprint in one of the world’s most dynamic and fast-growing connectivity markets and underscores our commitment to supporting India’s digital and security ambitions.
According to PJ Nath, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Nelco, the 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 should be noted, India’s telecom major group Bharti is a major shareholder in Eutelsat OneWeb.
nterestingly, Bharti Group’s telecom arm, Bharti Airtel Ltd, has also partnered with Elon Musk’s SpaceX to market the Starlink satellite internet service in India.
An agreement between Bharti Airtel and SpaceX was inked some time ago to explore the distribution of Starlink equipment through Airtel’s retail stores, offer Starlink services to business customers via Airtel, and connect communities, schools, and health centres, among many others, in even the most rural parts of India.
By adding Starlink to its portfolio alongside its existing alliance with Eutelsat OneWeb, Bharti Airtel aims to expand nationwide connectivity and reach underserved areas with limited or no coverage, the company had said earlier.
A Bharti Airtel official told that the Indian market presents a huge opportunity for both satellite connectivity providers.
