Gilat Satellite Networks Ltd. announced that the Company has been selected in a multimillion-dollar deal with Intelsat, to provide the satellite cellular backhaul solution for a leading mobile telecommunication company in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Intelsat deployed its CellBackhaul service with Gilat's SkyEdge II-c platform and Capricorn VSATs, connecting with a Ku-band satellite to bring mobile communications to nearly 1,000 previously underserved and unserved remote sites. The implementation brings mobile services to deep rural sites in the DRC, geographically the second-largest nation in Africa, with a growing population of more than 90 million people.

Working together, Intelsat and Gilat are extending mobile connectivity to areas where terrestrial backhaul networks are impractical, expensive, or otherwise unfeasible to deploy. With Gilat hubs and VSATs, Intelsat's CellBackhaul satellite cellular backhaul solution combines the extended reach and resiliency of Intelsat's largest-of-its-kind global network with network design, installation, and operation services, making it possible for mobile network operators to deploy services in areas where traditional terrestrial backhaul services are unavailable.