Marlink, has announced an agreement with Telenor Satellite Broadcasting (TSBc), a major satellite provider of broadcast and data services throughout Europe and the Middle East, to renew and increase Marlink’s capacity for the next three years. Utilising TSBc’s IS 10-02 high powered satellite capacity, located at the prime orbital location, 1°West, Marlink is able to meet the future requirements of its many maritime customers in the busy oceanic areas of the Nordic, European and Middle Eastern regions.

TSBc’s capacity on Intelsat 10-02 provides unsurpassed coverage above 60° North offering high throughput for Offshore, Transportation and Ferry customers of Marlink, one of few providers offering reliable services in this far Northern region. The contract confirms Marlink’s commitment to providing its customers with robust Ku-band coverage in these key areas of business. The agreement provides significant Ku-band capacity on Spot 2 of the satellite and almost 200 MHz Ku-band on Spot 1.

In a further move to create a flexible growth path, the agreement with TSB cconfirms an option for Marlink to use the Ka-band payload of the new THOR 7 satellite which will be operational in early 2014. This will provide additional capacity to support the increased demand anticipated from maritime customers in the coming years.

Tore Morten Olsen, CEO of Marlink commented, “We have enjoyed a long standing relationship with Telenor Satellite Broadcasting which has helped us to develop a reliable and trustworthy VSAT service for our customers in these essential regions. Coverage extends from the busy sea lanes North of Norway to Northern Africa and the Middle East. Our customers can therefore continue to rely on us to provide exceptional service and continuity. When the new THOR satellite comes online, Marlink will now be one of the first to utilize this new frequency band.”

“We are delighted that Marlink are confident in the high quality satellites services that Telenor Satellite Broadcasting provides by renewing and increasing their long term agreement“ said Cato Halsaa, Vice President and CEO of Telenor Satellite Broadcasting. “With the launch of THOR 7, we are particularly pleased to be able to offer Marlink a future growth path at 1° West, providing additional capacity to support increased communication services.”