Satcom companies to complement telecom networks in India

Tata Group-owned, Nelco, said that satellite communications companies will have a valid play with millimeter wave spectrum in the 28Ghz band in the country, adding that 5G is equally important for the telecom industry and both telcos and satellite companies can co-exist.

“Each of us has a play. We have a valid play, we believe. 5G is important for the telecom industry. There is no doubt. Similarly, the space sector is equally important. If you go by the statements by the Indian government, space is where India has to become very strong to be a big economy. Keeping that in mind, space is equally important,” said P J Nath, MD & CEO of Nelco.

Nath said that the authorities will come up with an amicable solution which is fair for both sides. “We have given our views to the TRAI. Eventually we will arrive at an amicable solution.”

The executive said that satellite communication is complementing the terrestrial telecom network and not trying to replace it. “Both need to coexist. No one technology will be sufficient. A lot of people say that if Leo satellites come, there is no need for fiber. It is not true. Both will coexist. Satellite, fiber, 4G and 5G – all have their own strengths and will coexist and serve,” he added.

Spectrum in the coveted 28 Ghz mmWave spectrum band, currently used exclusively for satellite services, is also considered highly efficient for 5G services.

Indian telecom operators, especially Reliance Jio and Vodafone Idea, are of the view that auction of spectrum for broadband-from-space services is rapidly gaining ground globally, with Brazil already having done so, and Saudi Arabia, Mexico and Thailand set to follow suit quickly.

Jio, in fact, has pushed the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) to “discard all demands” of global satellite players for administrative allocation of airwaves for broadband from–space services, and instead back spectrum allocation for such services only via auctions, in line with global trends.

Jio’s counter-submission is set to further intensify its running battle with global satellite players such as Bharti-backed OneWeb, Elon Musk’s Starlink, Amazon’s Project Kuiper and the Nelco-Telesat combine over the mode of spectrum allocation for establishing and operating satellite gateways in India.

Nelco, a B2B (business to business) player in the satellite communications service market, plans to offer LEO-satellite based broadband service in partnership with Telesat.

“We are a satellite communications services provider. We have ISP, NLD, VSAT licenses among others. We can use any satellite band allowed in the country and can start offering the service. If tomorrow, LEO satellites are allowed in India, we can offer it on day one since we have licenses,” Nath said.

He, however, added that a lot of regulatory clarity needs to come in before LEO operators can start offering services. “Govt is still working on those rules. For satellite earth stations, we still don’t have the clarity. Let’s see what the government comes up with.”

Nath said that Nelco is in the process of offering high throughput satellites (HTS) service using ISRO’s GSAT 29 satellite. “With GSAT 29, we should be operational in the North East in a month or two and are in the process of getting it deployed. We are also looking at some foriegn satellite operators for our service.” Mac Pro Tricks