Leonardo celebrates Telespazio's 20 years of success in Brazil

Brasilia  23 October 2017 14:38

Leonardo, among the top ten global players in Aerospace, Defence and Security, is pleased to celebrate 20 years of success in the Brazilian space sector. In fact, its subsidiary Telespazio has been present in the country since 1997, when the Company began supplying mobile satellite communication services through South America, and has accompanied the growth and development of the overall Brazilian space sector.

Over the years, as it established a local company based in Rio de Janeiro with a widespread presence throughout the country, Telespazio has become one of Brazil’s leading providers in the satellite telecommunications sector. The Company provides a wide range of cutting-edge solutions and innovative services to the corporate and institutional market in the communications, multimedia, and Earth observation sectors. It also dedicates engineering services, operations management, and maintenance of earth-based systems that control satellites in orbit. Telespazio Brasil has contributed the success of the Brazilian SGDC (Satélite Geoestacionário de Defesa e Comunicações Estratégicas) programme that, in 2017, saw the launch of a satellite for dual use telecommunications.

Telespazio’s 20th anniversary in Brazil was celebrated today at the Italian Embassy in Brasilia and was attended by the Italian Ambassador, Antonio Bernardini, who was joined by Leonardo Group’s Space Activities Coordinator and CEO of Telespazio, Luigi Pasquali, the President of Leonardo do Brazil, Placido De Maio, and the CEO of Telespazio Brazil, Marzio Laurenti.

“Today, it is with great pleasure that we celebrate the 20 years of our presence in Brazil, a country that is important to both Telespazio and the Leonardo Group,” said Luigi Pasquali. “We believed in this country from the start, and we will continue to invest in Brazil in the coming years, confident that we can grow further in satellite communications, a legacy sector of Leonardo, as well as in geo-information services. Data from the COSMO-SkyMed satellite constellation are benefiting the country as a whole, through the successful monitoring of the Amazon forest and to support both agriculture and security. In a country as vast, complex, and densely populated as Brazil, with almost 7,500 kilometres of coastline, enormous tropical forests, a river with the highest flow rate on the planet, an 85% rate of urbanisation, and megalopolises with more than ten million inhabitants, this is a sector that provides concrete answers to these needs.

“Today we celebrate the 20th anniversary of one of the most active, most technologically advanced and most successful Italian companies established in the country,” said Ambassador Antonio Bernardini. “This is another example of Italian excellence in Brazil, underlining the bonds that unite our two countries. Telespazio in Brazil is closely linked to the high technology sector, the benefits of which are substantial. Thanks to this successful venture, Leonardo and Telespazio are invaluable institutions for Italy as we implement policies related to research, innovation and defense, and advance our recent intergovernmental agreement on aerospace cooperation aimed at the joint development and transfer of technology in the field of security and defense, with particular regard to space and research and innovation.”

On the occasion, the Embassy is playing host to the “Admiring and Supporting Brazil from Space” exhibition. Ten spectacular high-resolution satellite images are on display, making it possible to experience a real virtual flight over the country, highlighting its beauty and unique characteristics.


Leonardo in Brazil

For more than 40 years, Leonardo’s technology has contributed to the development of Brazil, to the safety and security of its people, as well as protection and safeguard of its territory. Present in the country since 1970s, Leonardo has been instrumental in the Brazilian aerospace industry supporting the Brazilian Air Force (FAB) XAVANTE and AMX programs. A leading player in the Brazilian satellite services market with Telespazio, Leonardo has also provided the cutting-edge defense electronic systems and sensors that equip the Brazilian Armed Forces to defend the country, including new KC390 and Gripen aircraft which will be used by FAB in the future. Leonardo has over 200 helicopters operating in Brazil performing many roles including executive/corporate transport, law enforcement, public utility and offshore transport, with maintenance and support services from its Service Center in S. Paolo. Leonardo has also supplied the Brazilian Centre for Monitoring and Alerts for Natural Disasters (CEMADEN) with its weather radar systems, used to improve the ability to react in the case of extreme weather events.