Satellite positioning service to be delivered on Inmarsat satellites in 2027
Inmarsat Australia has won a $187.4 million contract for positioning and navigation service to benefit the Southern Positioning Augmentation Network’s (SouthPAN) satellite service. Inmarsat will provide the capability onboard three new I-8 satellites, which cover the Asia-Pacific region.
SouthPAN, an initiative between Geoscience Australia and Toitū Te Whenua Land Information New Zealand, will broadcast positioning services across all of the two countries, starting in 2027. The entities say it will improve current positioning accuracy to as little as 10 centimeters. An additional satellite service will also be procured, SouthPAN said.
“SouthPAN represents extraordinary potential for the region. It can save lives by enabling precision safety tracking, help farmers improve productivity through automated device tracking, or even support transport management systems of the future,” said Todd McDonell, Inmarsat Global Government president said, in a statement.
In October, Location Business News reported that the government of Australia had awarded Lockheed Martin LMT 0.00 a $1.18 billion contract to establish SouthPAN. The system, expected to be fully operational by 2028, will be provided as a service for 19 years with an option to extend, the company said.
The program will use the Lockheed Martin-developed, Second-Generation Satellite-Based Augmentation System (SBAS), which will broadcast on two frequencies to augment signals from GNSS, GPS and the European Union’s Galileo system.
Inmarsat Australia’s parent company, Inmarsat, has had a busy week as its purchase by Viasat VSAT 0.00 closed. Inmarsat’s shareholders received $551 million in cash and approximately 46.36 million shares of common stock, the company said.
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