NIGCOMSAT Selects Hughes Ground System for Planned 2A and 2B Satellites
NIGCOMSAT has chosen Hughes Network Systems' JUPITER platform for its planned NIGCOMSAT-2A and 2B satellites, alongside plans to develop local satellite-terminal assembly capacity in Nigeria.
Nigerian Communications Satellite Limited (NIGCOMSAT) has selected Hughes Network Systems’ JUPITER ground system for its planned NIGCOMSAT-2A and NIGCOMSAT-2B satellites.
Table Of Content
The agreement also provides for technical and engineering support from Hughes for a facility in Nigeria that is expected to assemble satellite terminals and other ground equipment. Preparatory work is expected to begin in 2026, ahead of planned satellite launches in 2028 and 2029.
Local assembly plans
NIGCOMSAT says the planned facility will cover equipment such as terminals, antennas, cables and related infrastructure used to send signals to satellites and receive them on Earth. The scale of local production and how much equipment will be manufactured or assembled in Nigeria has not been established.
The initiative is intended to build local capacity around satellite ground systems. If successful, the facility could potentially serve as a base for maintaining terminals across Africa and reduce reliance on imported ground equipment. Those outcomes remain possibilities rather than confirmed results.
Jane Egerton-Idehen, NIGCOMSAT’s managing director, said the JUPITER platform would allow the organisation to deploy capacity in the near term while expanding to meet Nigeria’s longer-term connectivity requirements.
“The JUPITER platform will allow us to efficiently deploy capacity today, while scaling to meet the country’s long-term connectivity needs,” Egerton-Idehen said.
Division of responsibilities
Hughes will develop the ground segment for the programme, while Thales Alenia Space and Israel Aerospace Industries will build the two satellites. The JUPITER system is expected to support Ka-, Ku- and C-band services for broadband, enterprise and government users.
Anshu Vij, Hughes’ managing director for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, said the selection reflected the performance and flexibility of the company’s platform.
“Being contracted by NIGCOMSAT for this strategic national program reflects the strength, flexibility, and proven performance of our JUPITER platform,” Vij said.
He added that the collaboration would support high-throughput connectivity and contribute to future growth, innovation and digital inclusion in Nigeria.
Why new ground equipment is needed
A NIGCOMSAT spokesperson said terminals used for the new satellites could not simply be carried over from NigComSat-1R as that satellite approaches the end of its operational life.
“Each satellite launch must have a ground station,” the spokesperson said.
NigComSat-1R replaced NigComSat-1 and was launched in 2011. NigComSat-1, launched in 2007, later suffered a solar-array failure and was eventually de-orbited.
NIGCOMSAT has previously expanded its ground infrastructure, including facilities in Lagos, Kaduna and Gombe, to support C-, Ku- and Ka-band services. It also upgraded its Abuja Master Control Station with new baseband equipment, tracking antennas and satellite-control software.
Egerton-Idehen has said the new collaboration could contribute to local manufacturing, innovation, job creation and economic diversification, while giving Nigeria greater control over its satellite communications infrastructure. The long-term commercial viability of the proposed assembly facility and whether it will serve customers beyond NIGCOMSAT have yet to be established.
No Comment! Be the first one.