While preparations are underway to roll out low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite services, Tata Group-backed satellite communications firm Nelco is conducting proof-of-concept trials and demonstrations with Eutelsat OneWeb for enterprise and institutional clients.
“We have been doing demos and proof-of-concepts through this partnership. We cannot sell commercially before the government’s go ahead but from a readiness standpoint, the ecosystem is largely in place,” P J Nath, Nelco’s managing director and CEO, said in an interaction with Fe.
These demonstrations are particularly crucial as they allow regulators to verify technical reliability, security compliance, and real-world performance before mass rollout. The idea is to help identify operational gaps early, reducing risks for both the government and consumers before the commercial launch.
Neclo to focus on B2B segment
Unlike global players that are eyeing direct-to-consumer broadband, Nelco said it is focussing on the B2B segment, where satellite connectivity is used for mission-critical applications in remote and hard-to-reach locations.
Nelco, majority-owned by Tata Power has aligned itself as a communications service provider rather than a satellite owner. The company does not operate its own satellites but contracts capacity from global operators while providing end-to-end services such as installation, integration, maintenance and customer support.
Nelco has recently partnered with OneWeb India Communications, Eutelsat’s local operating entity, to deliver secure, low-latency LEO connectivity for terrestrial, maritime and aviation sector customers, covering government and enterprise applications.
What did PJ Nath say?
LEOs orbit are usually closer to Earth (altitudes ranging upto 2,000 kilometers), as compared to geostationary (GEO) satellites. This proximity provides reduced latency with more stable connections and are usually operated by end-to- end global players.
“LEO operators are global operators. Unlike GEO satellites, where one can buy capacity on any satellite, put up own gateway and start operations, LEO works differently. The LEO operator makes the entire service operational end-to-end. As and when they become commercially operational in India, we will offer those services,”Nath said.
In parallel with Eutelsat’s moves, Elon Musk-led Starlink has begun technical and security demonstration runs in Mumbai as part of its bid to launch satellite broadband services in India.
On being asked why the selection of Eutalset, Nath said Eutelsat OneWeb was selected due to its operational readiness and enterprise-focused strategy.
While several global satellite operators, including Starlink, have stepped up hiring and local presence in India, Nelco said industry progress ultimately hinges on spectrum policy clarity and final authorisations.
On satellite broadband pricing, Nath has been clear that costs remain higher than terrestrial alternatives and that pricing models for satellite services cannot be easily shoehorned into traditional telecom pricing structures.
He said that satellite connectivity involves substantive upfront equipment costs and ongoing service fees that make it less competitive in the consumer broadband segment.
In related industry debates, Nelco has shown support for reserving L-band and S-band spectrum for satellite services in India, saying that these globally recognised satellite bands are pretty important for specialised connectivity applications, including direct-to-device services and narrowband IoT type use cases.
Nelco and other satcom industry players argue that denying these bands to satellite operators could stifle innovation in these segments, given the small footprint and the propagation properties that make L- and S-bands valuable for certain satellite applications.
