Canadian satellite communications company Telesat announced that it has signed a contract with space technology company MDA, and the Lightspeed constellation will be fully funded to build 198 satellites. Telesat Lightspeed satellites are scheduled to begin in mid-2026, with polar and global services planned for late 2027.
The official website that the redesigned Telesat Lightspeed satellite network will achieve higher network efficiency and greater flexibility. The new technology will make each satellite smaller than previously planned while maintaining the highest level of service performance, elasticity, and overall usable capacity.
Notably, the 198-satellite program is expected to save about $2 billion in total capital costs compared to Telesat’s previous capital estimates. The constellation was originally planned to include nearly 300 satellites, but Telesat cut the size by 100 satellites after encountering financing problems.
Telesat now has total funding commitments from Canadian federal and provincial government partners totaling approximately $2 billion. That funding, combined with Telesat’s own equity contribution of about $1.6 billion and certain vendor financing, will provide enough funding for the Telesat Lightspeed program to launch global service — after the first 156 satellites are in orbit.
