stc group and Astranis announced an agreement to deploy a dedicated satellite serving the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The satellite, part of Astranis’ Block 3 scheduled to launch in 2026, will expand stc group’s portfolio of satellite communication services and enhance connectivity across the Kingdom.
Countries around the world are increasingly investing in dedicated communications infrastructure, prioritising ownership and control over shared capacity. Saudi Arabia’s investment reflects the same shift, with expanded satellite coverage adding a further layer of redundancy alongside the Kingdom’s existing fiber network and reinforcing communications infrastructure that is already a national priority alongside other key sectors.
“As stc plays a key role in advancing Saudi Arabia’s digital infrastructure, space has become a critical layer of our ecosystem, with dedicated satellite capacity central to how we deliver resilient, reliable, and secure connectivity across the country,” said Mohammad Alabbadi, Group Chief Carrier & Wholesale Officer at stc group. “Astranis’ speed and flexibility made them the right partner for this stage of that work. Together, we are setting a new benchmark for secure and reliable connectivity supporting the Kingdom’s digital vision.”
This partnership gives stc group full authority over payload configuration and coverage, with data remaining in-region under enterprise-grade security. The model complements stc group’s capacity in other orbits, further expanding the reach and resilience of its network. Astranis’ satellite offering is built for rapid deployment, providing stc group with capacity on a rapid timeline.
“It’s an honour to work with stc group to deliver dedicated, secure networks that support the expansion of Saudi Arabia’s broader digital infrastructure programme,” said John Gedmark, CEO and co-founder of Astranis. “Countries require national control over critical networks and data, and we built Astranis to deliver it.”
This dedicated satellite is part of a broader wave of digital infrastructure investment already underway at stc group. The company has committed significant investment to a national network agreement, with phase one deployments already underway.
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