Major bandwidth upgrades proposed
NWT/NUNAVUT - Telesat is proposing a $160-million infrastructure expansion that the satellite service provider says will more than double the satellite bandwidth available for broadband in the North.
The company announced last Thursday it is prepared to invest 25 per cent, or about $40 million of the total cost, to provide the satellite bandwidth and ground segment upgrades over the next 10 years.
If approved, the so-called Arctic Communications Infrastructure Initiative could be implemented within one year, a Feb. 2 news release stated.
"(Telesat) is deeply committed to ensuring that Northern communities have access to a broadband communications infrastructure that is on par with that which exists in Southern Canada," vice-president of business development Paul Bush said, adding the initiative will provide "urgently needed network redundancy in every Northern community."
The proposal comes in response to the Arctic Communications Infrastructure Assessment Report published last year, which found "a growing gap between the level of service available in the North versus the South," a severe shortage of affordable bandwidth and frequent network outages suffered by all territories.
Logistics joint-venture formed
KIVALLIQ - Sakku Investments Corp., the development arm of the Kivalliq Inuit Association, has signed a joint-venture agreement with ATCO Structures and Logistics.
The agreement, signed during a ceremony at the Mineral Exploration Roundup conference held in Vancouver Jan. 28-31, creates Sakku ATCO Buildings and Services.
The new company will pursue resource development and infrastructure construction in Nunavut, a Jan. 27 news release said.
"ATCO's partnership with Sakku is a tremendous opportunity for both companies," stated Boris Rassin, ATCO executive vice-president of business development. "Together we will offer economical infrastructure solutions to the companies developing Canada's North, while working to create long-term business and employment opportunities for the Inuit people."
Sakku president and CEO Patrick Tagoona noted ATCO's 60 years of experience in construction and workforce camp operation will allow beneficiaries to share the wealth of the land "while providing necessary services to the mining industry."
ATCO Structures and Logistics is part of the ATCO Group of Companies, which has more than 8,000 employees and assets of about $12 billion.
Airship competition launched
SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE - Discovery Air Inc. subsidiary Discovery Air Innovations is holding a Hybrid Air Vehicle student paper competition.
The event, in partnership with the Canadian Transportation Research Forum, is to be the first in an annual tradition, the company said in a news release last Monday.
"Heavy Lift Hybrid Air Vehicles are a promising technology for the future with significant application in circumstances such as humanitarian missions where conventional modes of transportation may not be feasible," stated Stephen Newton, Innovations director of business development. "Getting students involved in the developmental phase of this technology is essential for the future of this technology."
The deadline for the 2011-2012 competition is March 31. It is open to all full-time university graduate students and offers prizes up to $500.
The company announced last summer its plans to bring a developing line of heavy-lift, blimp-like air vehicles to the North by 2014, in a deal signed with UK-based lighter-than-air aircraft manufacturer Hybrid Air Vehicles Ltd.
Meanwhile Discovery Air subsidiary Great Slave Helicopters Ltd. announced the completion of its purchase of Servicios Aereos Helicopters in Chile on Feb. 2.
Shares of Yellowknife-based Discovery Air Inc. closed at $3.85 Thursday on the Toronto Stock Exchange, $0.09 higher than the day of the purchase announcement.
