SpeedCast SELECTED BY VROON FOR HIGH-PERFORMANCE BROADBAND CONNECTIVITY FOR OFFSHORE SUBSEA SUPPORT, walk-to-work AND WIND TURBINE INSTALLATION/MAINTENANCE VESSELS

Rotterdam, The Netherlands, 5th August 2015 – SpeedCast International Limited (SpeedCast), a leading global satellite telecommunications service provider, today announced that it has been awarded a multi-year communications contract by international shipping company, Vroon. The new Ku-band satellite service will facilitate high-performance broadband connectivity with multi-megabit speeds, providing “hotel experience” Internet facilities for Vroon clients aboard specific categories of vessels. These include subsea-support vessels (10-25 passengers), walk-to-work vessels (with up to 60 passengers) and wind turbine installation/maintenance vessels (up to 110 passengers).

Vroon operates and manages a diverse fleet of approximately 170 vessels, with more than 400 shore-based staff and around 4,000 marine personnel worldwide. Vroon’s modern vessels are active in livestock transportation, offshore support, offshore wind turbine installation and maintenance, dry cargo, container and other segments, including product/chemical tankers, asphalt/bitumen tankers and car carriers.

Vroon conducted a competitive tender process to find a new VSAT supplier for client Internet access on board the “hotel experience” vessels.  SpeedCast was selected for its ability to meet a stringent set of requirements, which will enable Vroon to deliver future-proof, high-capacity and scalable VSAT Internet services to accommodate clients’ demanding Internet requirements.

“With an ever-increasing demand for Internet services from our clients, we selected SpeedCast to deliver these services in order to fulfil our clients’ current and future needs,” said Rob Frenks, Vroon Group ICT Manager.

SpeedCast’s solution will provide seamless connectivity, enabling high-speed Internet access and voice services for the “hotel experience” vessels. The always-on 24×7 broadband communications platform will support a wide range of services, including Internet, voice and video streaming, with real-time connectivity at sea.

“With our global infrastructure and innovative technology we can deliver a solution that will meet Vroon’s needs today, and for many years to come,” said Piers Cunningham, VP of Maritime Services, SpeedCast. “Looking forward, by delivering our satellite communications solution, we can help Vroon to deliver a future-proof and scalable Internet service that will meet the needs of their clients today and in the future.”

This announcement follows SpeedCast’s recent acquisitions of Hermes Datacomms and Geolink Satellite Services, as well as select NewSat assets, which further enhanced SpeedCast’s products and services tailored for the energy and maritime sectors.