Kacific Broadband Satellites Group (Kacific) is a
satellite
A satellite or artificial satellite is an object intentionally placed into orbit in outer space. Except for passive satellites, most satellites have an electricity generation system for equipment on board, such as solar panels or radioisotope ...
operator providing a high-speed broadband internet service for the South East Asia and Pacific Islands regions. Its first Ka-band HTS satellite, Kacific1, was designed and built by Boeing and launched into geostationary orbit atop a
SpaceX
Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX) is an American spacecraft manufacturer, launcher, and a satellite communications corporation headquartered in Hawthorne, California. It was founded in 2002 by Elon Musk with the stated goal of ...
Falcon 9
Falcon 9 is a partially reusable medium lift launch vehicle that can carry cargo and crew into Earth orbit, produced by American aerospace company SpaceX.
The rocket has two stages. The first (booster) stage carries the second stage and payl ...
launch vehicle on 16 December 2019.
History
Kacific is the brainchild of Christian Patouraux, also CEO, who founded the company in 2013. In its first months, to raise capital and develop the business plan, the company attracted Mark Rigolle and Cyril Annarella, who became co-founders. The company is registered in Vanuatu.
In December 2013, Kacific announced its intention to launch Kacific1.
This
Ka-band
The Ka band (pronounced as either "kay-ay band" or "ka band") is a portion of the microwave part of the electromagnetic spectrum defined as frequencies in the range 26.5–40 gigahertz (GHz), i.e. wavelengths from slightly over one centime ...
high throughput satellite
High-throughput satellite (HTS) is a communications satellite that provides more throughput than a classic FSS satellite (at least twice, though usually by a factor of 20 or more) for the same amount of allocated orbital spectrum, thus significan ...
(HTS) placed in
geostationary orbit
A geostationary orbit, also referred to as a geosynchronous equatorial orbit''Geostationary orbit'' and ''Geosynchronous (equatorial) orbit'' are used somewhat interchangeably in sources. (GEO), is a circular geosynchronous orbit in altitud ...
will provide high speed internet to the Pacific region and South East Asia.
Designed and manufactured by Boeing, the Kacific1 HTS satellite is based on the 702 satellite platform.
Kacific offers direct internet access, via wholesale channels, to government agencies, institutions, businesses, community groups and households within the satellite's total footprint area following the launch of the satellite in December 2019.
In June 2014, Kacific signed a five-year agreement with
Tuvalu Telecommunications Corporation
Tuvalu Telecommunications Corporation (TTC) is a state-owned enterprise of Tuvalu, which provides fixed-line telephone communications to subscribers on each of the islands of Tuvalu. Each island in Tuvalu relies on TTC for the use of a satellite ...
(TTC) to provide high speed internet bandwidth to TTC and the people of
Tuvalu
Tuvalu ( or ; formerly known as the Ellice Islands) is an island country and microstate in the Polynesian subregion of Oceania in the Pacific Ocean. Its islands are situated about midway between Hawaii and Australia. They lie east-northeast ...
.
In August of the same year, Solomon Telekom Company Limited (Our Telekom) signed a ten-year agreement with Kacific to deliver high-speed broadband to the people of the
Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands is an island country consisting of six major islands and over 900 smaller islands in Oceania, to the east of Papua New Guinea and north-west of Vanuatu. It has a land area of , and a population of approx. 700,000. Its capita ...
.
In September 2014, Kacific signed a cooperation agreement with the
International Telecommunication Union
The International Telecommunication Union is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for many matters related to information and communication technologies. It was established on 17 May 1865 as the International Telegraph Unio ...
(ITU) for the development of satellite communications capacity and emergency communications solutions for the Pacific region.
In October 2014, Kacific signed a five-year agreement with
Telecom Services Kiribati Limited (TSKL) to provide high-speed broadband to the 33 islands and atolls of Kiribati.
In May 2015 Indonesian satellite service provider, BigNet, signed a US$78 million, long-term agreement with Kacific for the provision of high-speed broadband service from 2017.
In June 2016, Kacific began an interim service, providing a high-speed broadband internet connection to the rural Lambubu area on Malekula Island, Vanuatu from a Ku-band satellite.
In February 2017, Kacific announced that The Boeing Company will design and manufacture Kacific1, its first satellite based on the 702 satellite platform.
Later that year, Kacific announced SpaceX as the launch provider for Kacific1, using a Falcon 9 two-stage orbit-class rocket.
In September 2018, Kacific selected Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. to manufacture and install its teleport radio-frequency equipment.
In November 2019, Kacific confirmed its agreement with global digital infrastructure provider, Tata Communications, to provide global internet and cyber security services for Kacific’s Ka-band satellite network.
In December 2019, Kacific confirmed that it had secured credit facilities totaling US$160 million with a group of financial institutions including the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and GuarantCo.
On 16 December 2019, the company’s first Ka-band HTS satellite, Kacific1, launched into geostationary orbit atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 launch vehicle from Cape Canaveral, Florida.
Affiliations and memberships
Kacific is member of the
Pacific Telecommunications Council (PTC), Member of the Pacific Islands Telecommunication Association (PITA), a member of the Global VSAT Forum (GVF), and an affiliate member of the Asia-Pacific Tele-community (APT).
Awards
Cooperation of the Year Award 2022 – SIG Awards.
Outstanding Satellite Operator of the Year 2022 – PTC Awards.
Outstanding Support for PTC's Vision & Mission 2022 – PTC Awards.
CEO of the Year for Wholesale & Capacity (Operator) 2021 – Telecom Review.
Project of the Year – Satellite 2021 – Global Carrier Awards.
Business as a Force for Good Award 2021 - INSEAD Alumni Association.
Newcomer Satcom Operator Award 2020 - Euroconsult.
Satellite Executive of the Year 2019: Christian Patouraux – Asia-Pacific Satellite Communications Council (APSCC).
Best Digital Inclusion 2019 – Pacific ICT Awards.
Better Satellite World Award 2018 – Space & Satellite Professionals International (SSPI).
Best Potential in Asia 2015 – France Singapore ICT Awards.
Coverage
The Kacific1 satellite uses spot beams to place capacity over regions within Asia Pacific.
Countries with areas under spot beam coverage include: American Samoa, Bhutan, Brunei, Cook Islands, East Timor, Fiji, French Polynesia, Guam, Indonesia, Kiribati, Malaysia, Micronesia, Myanmar, Nepal, New Zealand, Niue, Northern Mariana, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu.
References
{{reflist, 2
External links
Kacific Broadband Satellites Group websiteKacific1 satellite coverage map
Communications satellite operators