Norwegian company Tau Tech is set to begin sustainable scallop harvesting in the Barents Sea, using technology from Inmarsat, the world leader in global, mobile satellite communications services. Inmarsat’s Fleet Xpress, the maritime industry’s leading broadband service, will deliver a consistent, stable, uninterrupted quality of service and seamless high-speed network coverage in the Arctic.
Traditional seabed dredging of scallops has not been allowed by Norwegian authorities for 30 years, due to its damaging effects on marine ecosystems. In cooperation with the Institute of Marine Research, the Directorate of Fisheries and other leading marine experts, Tau Tech has proven over the past five years that its innovative technology makes it possible to identify, select and sort shells without destroying surrounding vegetation and life. The company’s pioneering approach to scallop harvesting will commence in autumn and aims to revive the harvesting of the valuable seafood resource at a commercial scale.
Through the Fleet Edge platform, Inmarsat’s Fleet Xpress offers shipowners access to a broad portfolio of value-added services and supports a flexible, step-by-step approach to digitalisation. Services are delivered via a secure, dedicated network with no impact on mission-critical bandwidth. Fleet Xpress allows users to upgrade bandwidth easily as shipping companies adopt applications at a pace that suits them, from email and basic office applications to IoT-powered solutions and emerging technologies targeting fuel savings, emissions reduction, and other operational enhancements.
The Arctic Circle represents a rapidly growing connectivity region for high-quality broadband with increasing requirements from maritime customers. GX10A and 10B will be the world’s first mobile broadband payloads dedicated to the Arctic region, making Inmarsat the only provider offering dedicated high-throughput mobile broadband connectivity for maritime customers in the Arctic region. The multi-beam, high-throughput HEO(highly elliptical orbit) payloads will ensure continuous coverage and offer the ability to direct capacity in real-time to the areas of highest demand.
The expansion of Inmarsat’s Global Xpress(GX) network is being delivered in partnership with Space Norway and its subsidiary Space Norway HEOSAT as part of the Arctic Satellite Broadband Mission.