Avanti and Q-KON teams. Photo: Avanti

Avanti Communications is launching LEO satellite connectivity services in South Africa. It is partnering with Q-KON, a satellite engineering enterprise for southern Africa, to deliver Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) connectivity from Eutelsat OneWeb. Avanti announced the launch of these services, May 13.

The deal bolsters Avanti’s multi-orbit solution and means the company can now offer a combination of LEO and GEO services effective immediately. The operator now hopes it is well-positioned to identify and deliver effective solutions for enterprise customers in need of more choice, flexibility and resilience. Avanti already has a strong, on-the-ground presence in South Africa with infrastructure in Johannesburg. More than a fifth of the company’s workforce operates in Africa.

“We are delighted to be partnering with Q-KON to provide LEO services to our customers across South Africa. This is a strategically significant move for us in multi-orbit and we hope that this is the first of many LEO partnerships globally. This hybrid model gives our customers in South Africa the assurance that all their unique problems can be solved through our services. This is particularly important for our enterprise customers in South Africa where the need for resilience is key,” Kyle Whitehill, CEO of Avanti Communications, said in a statement.