Ibadan, 29 January 2024. – Hellas Sat and Thales Alenia Space have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to collaborate on the development of an optical communication payload for the future Hellas Sat 5 telecommunications satellite, operating in geostationary orbit at 39 degrees East.
The partnership aims to provide cutting-edge communication services with very high data rates from geostationary orbit. Furthermore, the payload aims to connect with the Optical Ground Station of the National Athens Observatory in Greece, the Optical Ground Stations in France, the Optical Ground Stations of ESA and Thales Alenia Space’s LEO HydRON telecommunication satellite.
The MoU signing ceremony took place at Hellas Sat’s headquarters in Athens, Greece, with representatives from the Prime Minister’s Office, the French embassy in Greece, ESA, CNES, Thales Alenia Space France, Italy and Switzerland, the National Athens Observatory, along with various Greek ministries and local authorities in attendance.
Speaking on the partnership, Christodoulos Protopapas, CEO of Hellas Sat, stated: “We have the honor to work once again with Thales Alenia Space in the realm of optical communication technology, introducing the optical connectivity communication services to the European and International market, thus effectively achieving the implementation of new technologies and sealing a new era.”
Likewise, Marc-Henri Serre, Executive Vice President of Telecommunications at Thales Alenia Space, commented, “We are happy to collaborate with Hellas Sat and all our partners to develop optical communications payload, a crucial step towards establishing a secure and very high data rate optical network. This marks the beginning of a new era in telecommunication services with a sustainable approach.”
