Batelco headquarters in Bahrain. Photo: Wikipedia

Viasat has signed an MoU with Bahrain Telecommunication Company (Batelco) to distribute satellite broadband connectivity to businesses in the Middle East and North Africa region. Batelco is a digital solutions provider in the Kingdom of Bahrain. 

The non-binding MOU, announced Tuesday, looks to leverage satellite broadband capacity from Viasat’s current satellite systems and the ViaSat-3 satellite platform, once launched and operational. The companies expect to implement a proof-of-concept trial within the next several months.

The companies also plan to explore other potential service areas including: hybrid connectivity solutions combining satellite and terrestrial broadband for businesses; corporate local area network extension services; satellite connectivity for mobile backhaul; and IoT business to business applications.  

“By signing a MOU with Batelco, we can strategically explore various business synergies and collaborations with a proven market leader in the MENA region — ahead of the launch of our next-generation ViaSat-3 satellite constellation. We recognize Batelco shares a similar customer philosophy — to deliver a superior customer experience — and we’re looking forward to discovering new opportunities for our advanced B2B broadband services,” said Peter Langkilde, Viasat’s general manager of Broadband Services, Europe, Middle East and Africa.