The contract: DIA awards 2.3 billion CAD to Telesat
Canada’s Defense Investment Agency (DIA) has awarded Ottawa-based Telesat a 2.3 billion CAD (reported as $1.6 billion) contract under the Enhanced Satellite Communications Project – Polar (ESCP-P) to supply secure military Ka-band satellite communications in the Arctic. The baseline contract covers five years, with two additional five-year options valued at 214 million CAD and 218 million CAD, Telesat said in a press release carried in government materials.
Telesat Lightspeed expansion: 69 satellites and a 900-link optical mesh
The deal requires an expansion of Telesat’s Lightspeed Low Earth Orbit (LEO) network from 156 satellites currently in production to 225 — an addition of 69 “birds” with Canadian satellite maker MDA subcontracted to build the new spacecraft, according to Telesat. A company spokesperson told Breaking Defense that “all 225 satellites will have 4 optical links,” creating “900 OISLs [optical intersatellite links] in space that are compliant with SDA’s [the US Space Development Agency] standard.”
Telesat described Lightspeed as “a global, low-latency mesh network leveraging optical intersatellite links,” and the spokesperson said it offers a “global, self-healing mesh network ensuring data severity, resiliency, and user-to-user connectivity.”
The cyber insurance questionnaire just landed. Now what?
SOC 2, HIPAA, insurance renewals - someone has to own security strategy. Nubivance provides fractional CISO leadership without the full-time salary.
Get a security lead →Coverage, timeline and integration: 65–90°N starting in 2028
The ESCP-P service to the Canadian Armed Forces will provide MILSATCOM coverage ranging from 65 to 90 degrees North latitude, with services scheduled to begin in 2028. In addition to satellite capacity, a separate DIA agreement with Telesat covers “end-to-end network integration services — including user terminals, ground and control infrastructure, training, and support services,” the Telesat release said.
MDA, PSPC and the Strategic Partner model
Last December the Defence Ministry, through Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC), signed a “strategic partnership agreement” with the Canadian government, Telesat and MDA for the multi-phase ESCP-P project. The government described the Strategic Partner model as “an innovative approach to defence procurement that streamlines processes and accelerates timelines while leveraging industry expertise in the design, development and delivery of complex defence capabilities.”
As the next step, the government said it is negotiating with the two firms for a future ultra-high frequency (UHF) and X-band constellation in medium Earth orbit (MEO). In that planned arrangement, the announcement named MDA Space as the prime contractor “responsible for end-to-end mission delivery,” with Telesat serving as the subcontractor for that element.
Operational resilience, Arctic challenges, and expert views
Government and industry materials spell out the technical and environmental rationale for the approach. The announcement notes fiber optic cable and cell networks face challenges in the High North due to harsh weather, while traditional geosynchronous SATCOM “have difficulties due to the rugged landscape blocking signals and the limited polar coverage that orbit can provide.” Telesat and external experts contend Lightspeed’s mesh and optical links mitigate those limits by routing traffic between satellites without relying on a single terrestrial path.
Jessica West, a space analyst at Project Ploughshares, wrote by email that Lightspeed’s mesh design “creates more options for maintaining communications if ground infrastructure, including subsea cables, is disrupted or unavailable.” Telesat’s spokesperson added Lightspeed “is the perfect solution to provide backup connectivity in the case of an undersea fibre cut.”
How the Canadian Armed Forces, policymakers, and technologists are likely to respond
- Canadian Armed Forces: Expect expanded ability “to connect, command and coordinate in the Arctic and other high-latitude regions,” in the words of Lt. Gen. Jamie Speiser-Blanchet, and a direct contribution to ongoing modernization of the bilateral US-Canada North American Defense Command.
- Policymakers and procurement offices: PSPC’s Strategic Partner model will be tested as the program moves from contract award to satellite production, integration and the pending UHF/X-band negotiations led by MDA Space and Telesat as prime and subcontractor, respectively.
- Technologists and security teams: Telesat’s 900 OISLs and SDA-standard compliance will be a focal point for assessing resilience, latency, and the practical benefits of a dual-use commercial-military architecture in polar conditions.
The ESCP-P award is described in the government materials as only the first step in a wider Canadian plan to field a secure MILSATCOM grid over the Arctic and far north. The immediate next, named step in the public record is the government’s continuing negotiations for a UHF and X-band MEO constellation, where MDA Space would act as prime contractor and Telesat as subcontractor. For now, the record ties together a larger procurement experiment — Strategic Partnering — with an expanded Lightspeed fleet, a stated 2028 start of Arctic service, and an explicit aim to harden Canada’s sovereign communications in a region the government says is rising in strategic importance.
