Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace has been awarded a contract from the Norwegian Intelligence Service (NIS) on behalf of the Norwegian government to provide satellite maritime surveillance data to cover Norwegian Areas of Interest.
NIS has the overall responsibility for space operations and development in the Norwegian Armed Forces.
The data will be utilized by the Norwegian Armed Forces, as well as other Norwegian government institutions involved in maritime security such as the Coastal Administration, the Directorate of Fisheries, and the Norwegian Customs.
Noteworthy, the contract covers five years of service from 2025, when the satellites will be launched and operational.
The contract value is undisclosed.
The three satellites will be produced by Kongsberg NanoAvionics and equipped with Automatic Identification System (AIS) receivers and detector systems, delivered by Kongsberg Discovery.
The satellites will be owned by KONGSBERG and operated by Kongsberg Satellite Services (KSAT), which will utilize its international network of downloading stations to provide high frequency and low latency surveillance data for both the Norwegian Government as well as international customers.
The satellite constellation, named N3X, is the first in a series of satellites that KONGSBERG plans to build and operate – optimized to provide the best possible data sets for the users.
Further, the satellites will have excess capability outside Norwegian Areas of Interest that will be available for international users.
