Orange and Eutelsat Sign New LEO Contract

Orange signed a new contract with Eutelsat to ramp up its low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite offering. The multi-year agreement gives Orange access to high-capacity, low-latency satellite services to complement its terrestrial infrastructure, allowing it to offer customers seamless service continuity and improved security.

The operator stated that the move is the key to supporting mobile backhaul and delivering resilient coverage in remote and underserved areas. Jean Louis Le Roux, EVP of Orange International Networks, said the partnership with Eutelsat was of strategic importance to support customers’ digital transformation, describing the LEO-based service as a sovereign digital connectivity solution fit for Orange’s global footprint.

Eutelsat’s Connectivity Business Unit president, Cyril Dujardin, also hailed the extension of the partnership, noting LEO services are becoming an integral technology for global telco operators. The deal builds on earlier satellite collaborations between the pair. Orange is the exclusive reseller of capacity on Eutelsat’s Konnect VHTS broadband satellite in France under a deal struck in 2018, while its Middle East and Africa arm signed up for Eutelsat Konnect capacity earlier this year. The news comes shortly after Eutelsat conducted discussions with investors to raise €1.5 billion to fund the expansion of its LEO satellite infrastructure.