Canada to invest in satellite technology to connect rural, remote areas

FILE: Telesat saleite dishes on Unwin Avenue by Leslie spit, listening, watching, in need of a paint job (Photo By George Socka from Toronto, Canada – June 2012 Satelite Dishes by Leslie Spit – Can You Hear Me Now?, CC BY 2.0)

OTTAWA — The federal government is making a big funding announcement Wednesday alongside a Canadian company that’s developing satellite technology to expand high-speed Internet access in rural and remote regions.

The head of Ottawa-based Telesat will join Economic Development Minister Navdeep Bains for an event that appears to be part of the government’s commitment to invest $100 million over five years into a technology known as low-Earth-orbit satellites.

In its spring budget, the Liberal government said low-Earth-orbit satellite capacity would be part of its $1.7-billion vow to help rural and remote areas gain access to reliable, high-speed Internet.

Telesat has been developing a satellite constellation — a group of co-ordinated satellites it says will provide high-speed connectivity in rural and remote communities around the globe.

Company CEO Dan Goldberg will hold a news conference with Bains at the Canada Aviation and Space Museum following the announcement.

On its website, Telesat says its state-of-the-art satellite constellation will involve launching highly advanced satellites into low Earth orbit, which is about 1,000 km from the surface of the planet — much closer than traditional satellites.

The satellites will “seamlessly integrate with terrestrial networks,” the company says.

In March, the federal government earmarked between billion and billion in new investments over the next decade for a plan to make sure 95 per cent of Canadian homes and businesses will have access to high-speed Internet by 2026.

It also set a target of 100-per-cent connectivity throughout the country by 2030.

In addition to the development of low-orbit satellite technology, the government plan also includes investments aimed at encouraging more private-sector spending on rural high-speed Internet and better co-ordination among provinces and territories.

The budget also announced the federal infrastructure bank would seek to invest $1 billion over the next decade as a way to attract $2 billion in additional private investments towards expanding connectivity.