OneWeb’s antenna supplier in South Korea inks $60 million deal with SES

SEOUL, South Korea — South Korean antenna maker Intellian Technologies signed a supply deal worth 71.1 billion won ($60 million) with Luxembourg-based satellite fleet operator SES.

Intellian announced Oct. 5 that it will provide Ku-band antennas for SES’s next-generation medium-Earth-orbit (MEO) broadband constellation, O3b mPOWER, expected to launch later this year. Building on the success of O3b, each of the 11 high-throughput, low-latency O3b mPOWER satellites will deliver high-speed connectivity services from tens of megabits to multiple gigabits per second, providing fiber-like connectivity to customers globally, according to SES website.

Intellian didn’t reveal how many antennas will be supplied under the contract, only that they will be “various in size and a mix of products operating on the ground and in the ocean.”

The deal is another milestone for Intellian that has strived to do business with international players. Intellian has established a position as a major supplier to British satellite broadband startup OneWeb. The two have signed three contracts since 2019 — December, March and August  — worth roughly 113 billion won combined.

The company is building its second manufacturing plant to meet increasing demand for user terminals for low Earth orbit broadband. A spokesman told SpaceNews in August that building the second plant is “part of efforts to ensure a stable supply to OneWeb.”

In July, Intellian opened its European headquarters and logistics center in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, underpinning its commitment to the European market. The company also contributed to developing a briefcase-sized electronically steered user terminal called OW1, which OneWeb unveiled Aug. 24 during the 36th Space Symposium in Colorado Springs, Colorado.