Intelsat 18 rendering. Photo: Orbital ATK

[Via Satellite 06-07-2016] Office des Postes et Telecommunications of French Polynesia (OPT) has signed a new and expanded contract for Ku-band satellite solutions on Intelsat 18, located at 180 degrees east. In 2008, Intelsat designed a Ku-band beam on the satellite for OPT to provide coverage to all of French Polynesia, including the Cook Islands. The new multi-year agreement will enable OPT to further expand its wireless infrastructure to meet growing mobile broadband and internet needs from businesses and communities in the more remote islands of the archipelagos located in the South Pacific.

“Intelsat’s satellite solutions have enabled OPT to scale our network as the demands for internet and mobile broadband connectivity continue to rise,” said Jean-Francois Martin, president and CEO of OPT. “The optimized performance of Intelsat 18 provides a complement to our terrestrial infrastructure which will enable OPT to further extend its network, increase its business and, more importantly, provide reliable internet connectivity to the citizens of French Polynesia, reducing the digital divide between Tahiti and the remote islands.”