With the deal, Speedcast has become the first service provider to partner with Tampnet for the network, which provides video, secure data and voice over IP to oil and gas platforms.
Keith Johnson, Speedcast’s senior vice president for energy, said that Tampnet’s “robust, redundant network complements the core communications technologies that we provide to our customers operating in the Gulf of Mexico”.
The two companies already work together on a similar network that covers production platforms in the North Sea. The Gulf of Mexico network has terrestrial landing points at Houston and Baton Rouge.
“Speedcast has been a partner of Tampnet in the North Sea for 15 years and we’ve seen first-hand the value that they bring to offshore communications,” said Johnson. “Speedcast remains committed to providing innovative services to keep our customers reliably connected and this agreement represents one more step we are taking to ensure we’re delivering the solution that best fits their needs.”
Parts of the network are connected using fibre or microwave. Speedcast explained: “The LTE network will be supported by the largest high-capacity, low-latency backhaul network in the Gulf of Mexico – based on state-of-the-art, carrier-grade microwave equipment and the only offshore fibre network in the Gulf of Mexico.”
Tampnet CEO Per Helge Svensson said: “The dedicated people at Speedcast have really shown they are pragmatic in terms of choice of telecommunications infrastructure – always in the best interest of their customers. Extending our relationship with them to include our Gulf of Mexico infrastructure services is a great milestone that we are confident will accelerate our mutual growth in the region.”
