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Solstad reinvests in OSV satellite connectivity
A Norwegian owner is enhancing satellite connectivity across its fleet of offshore support vessels to apply advanced communications applications for crew, clients and operations
Oslo, Norway-listed Solstad is reinvesting in communications across its diverse fleet of offshore support vessels for faster connectivity over satellite constellations.
Its vessels, which operate globally in Brazil, the North Sea, southeast Asia, Australia and Africa, will use very small aperture terminal (VSAT) technology and low Earth orbit (LEO) satellites for another 3.5 years under the renewed contract with Marlink.
Solstad will use combined VSAT-LEO managed services on its anchor handlers, subsea construction and maintenance support vessels to enable crew to access social media and streaming applications, while deploying video conferencing and cloud computing for operational purposes.
It has renewed its contract with Marlink to use Sealink NextGen communications across its fleet until the end of 2028. Sealink NextGen combines Starlink LEO as a primary communications network with Ku-band VSAT over satellites in geostationary orbit, and uses L-band mobile satellite services as a back-up.
High speed, low latency LEO primary communications enable advanced applications and crew connections, while VSAT and L-band provide full redundancy for all applications on a global basis.
Solstad ICT director Christian Nesheim said this combination enables reliability and innovation in communications.
“Agile partners like Marlink help us achieve the goals that support our business needs,” he said.
The contract provides Solstad with the flexibility to adapt its existing fleet set-up in the most cost-efficient way.
By using Starlink as the primary channel, Solstad can use faster throughput, providing flexible bandwidth across its fleet. Vessel managers can assign bandwidth where it is required, depending on vessel deployments and the available connectivity.
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