Sait Communications News

Marlink Japan, the Tokyo-based arm of global maritime communications specialist Marlink is celebrating 40 years in business this month. Established in 1978 as SAIT Marine, Marlink Japan is the second-longest serving foreign-owned satcom company in the country, and has been delivering communication services and support to maritime clients in the region for longer than any other company.With deep cultural understanding and local knowledge, Marlink Japan provides Customer Support, Technical Service, and Sales and Marketing for customers based in, or operating in Japan, Korea and Far East Russia.

SpeedCast International Limited (SpeedCast), a global satellite telecommunications service provider, announced that it has been awarded a multi-year communications contract from Gulf Marine Services (GMS). The new dual-beam Ku-band satellite service will provide high-performance broadband connectivity for client office applications and voice services across nine GMS barges. GMS is one of the largest providers of self-propelled, self-elevating accommodation jack-up barges in the world. The vessels work in offshore oilfields, often in harsh weather conditions, and therefore require a reliable and high-quality connection between the vessels and the land-based operations.

Intellian announced the appointment of Søren Einshøj as its new Global Chief Strategy Officer and President. With nearly twenty years in the marine communications industry, Einshøj will lead Intellian’s growth. Based in Oslo, Norway, President and CSO Søren Einshøj will be part of the core leadership within Intellian. Einshøj will be focused on developing and managing strategic alliances and partnerships throughout the industry worldwide. In 2001 on behalf of Telenor, formerly Norwegian PTT, Einshøj founded Marlink, a merger between Telenor owners’ maritime satellite communication unit and the acquired SAIT Communications SA based in Belgium.

Sait-Stento has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Telenor Broadband Services, a subsidiary of Telenor with plans to sell all of its shares in Sait Communications to Telenor for approximately $28.2 million. The transaction and consideration is subject to due diligence and board approval from the above-mentioned parties. It is estimated that final negotiations are to be completed by the end of February 2001.

Iridium Satellite LLC has signed a non-exclusive agreement with SAIT Communications S.A. top-tier service provider of the only truly global, truly mobile satellite voice and data solution with complete coverage of the Earth's oceans, airways and Polar Regions. SAIT Communications S.A. (Former SAIT RadioHolland) currently provides satellite services for remote maritime, government and military users in Western Europe, the Mediterranean, Scandinavia, Asia Pacific and the Americas. SAIT's agreement with Iridium will enable it to provide its customers with a versatile communications service that will address customers' needs to stay in touch when operating in remote locations around the world.