Intelsat has partnered with CNH CNHI 1.37%↑ to install, connect and operate ruggedized multi-orbit satellite terminals on CNH’s farm equipment operating in remote farmland throughout Brazil.
The service, which be available in the second half of 2024, will use Intelsat’s FlexMove satellite network to give farmers connectivity to adopt connected equipment. Currently, the company says that only 19 percent of available farming area in Brazil has high-speed internet access.
CNH, whose brands include Case IH, New Holland and Steyr, has made big investments on precision agriculture. Last year, the company purchased Hemisphere GNSS from China-based Unistrong for an estimated $175 million. The company said that Hemisphere, when combined with its Raven agriculture brand, will give it full control over precision and navigation technologies.
Intelsat and CNH acknowledge they going to be the first to market for this type of connectivity for remote farmers, beating out SpaceX and John Deere $DE, who formed a partnership in January. Using the SpaceX Starlink network, the venture will allow farmers with connectivity challenges to leverage precision agriculture technologies.
“As the first satellite communications company to provide multi-orbit connectivity to farmers around the world, Intelsat’s collaboration with CNH will unlock new capabilities in the most remote locations through our global communications platform,” said Dave Wajsgras, Intelsat CEO, in a statement. “We’ve proven that ruggedized, built-for-purpose terminals that can access multiple satellite orbits from anywhere offer the highest network reliability, greater throughput and the best user experience.”
