SES, Shevon to Boost African Mining Connectivity

A leading African mining company based in the DRC will be enjoying high-speed satellite-based connectivity services as part of a new agreement between Shevon and SES, the two companies announced today.

The two-year agreement will see Shevon provide for the first time SES’s O3b Medium Earth Orbit (MEO) high-throughput and low-latency connectivity services, enabling the DRC mining company to implement new services and applications that will improve workers’ safety, digitalise operations and maximise profitability through increased agility and automation. The new agreement reflects the strength and success of the existing long-term partnership between the two companies.

Craig Jennings, CEO of Shevon, said, “SES has been providing us geostationary satellite capacity for years and it has served us well. However, in recent years, we have seen the energy sector in this region growing and developing where the demand for reliable, high-throughput and low-latency services is more critical than ever. We are excited for our first MEO contract with SES and how the low-latency services will transform our business.”

Caroline Kamaitha, Vice President of Sales Africa at SES, said, “Digitalisation is helping the mining industry to evolve. High-throughput, low-latency connectivity and native integration with cloud platforms is enabling a new generation of more profitable operators, who can also boast high levels of oversight and compliance over their remote sites. At SES, we are proud to be helping to spearhead this change through our O3b MEO network – and through our upcoming O3b mPOWER service.”