Ibadan, 2 December 2022. – OQ Technology, a pioneer of 5G IoT satellite services, has announced March 2023 as the planned launch date for the Luxembourg Space Agency (LSA) & European Space Agency ( ESA) -supported MACSAT mission, following its recent 13 million euros Series A funding round.
The on-orbit pathfinder mission, to launch on a Vega-C rocket rideshare mission (VV23), is to demonstrate advanced 5G IoT services. It will be able to process a high number of 5G-enabled devices via strategic satellite frequencies that are common with terrestrial mobile from Low Earth orbit (LEO). On the other hand, MACSAT is a 2 million euros smallsat mission with OQ Technology as the prime contractor. Furthermore, the Luxembourg Government is funding the project through an ESA contract with the Luxembourg National Space program (LuxIMPULSE).
“We are so excited to launch this mission which we have been working on for some time. We thank our partners at the Luxembourg Space Agency and the European Space Agency for trusting us and who have been always supporting us throughout this journey,” said Omar Qaise, Founder and CEO of OQ Technology.
The mission will be to test advanced 5G IoT algorithms, paving the way for qualifying existing 5G NB (narrowband)-IoT chips for commercial via-satellite deployment. It will also be part of OQ Technology’s constellation to offer commercial connectivity services.
Lithuanian mission integrator and smallsat manufacturer NanoAvionics built the 6U nanosatellite, while OQ Technology developed the payload. The 5G IoT operator is also responsible for the mission’s overall management, satellite procurement, and operations.
Qaise added that OQ Technology was in an excellent position to be a “pioneer in connecting cellular IoT devices to LEO satellites with its first successful narrowband IoT waveform mission back in 2019.” “With many customers from the energy, logistics, agriculture, and maritime market interested in OQ’s solution and large Telcos willing to onboard satellite cellular IoT products, OQ Technology is well positioned to serve these customers next year,” Qaise said.
