Orange revitalizes its Bercenay-en-Othe teleport through a strategic partnership with Telesat in the New Space era
Executive summary: Orange is repurposing its Bercenay-en-Othe teleport facility to support Telesat's Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite network via terrestrial antennas. This marks a strategic integration of traditional telecom infrastructure with the emerging New Space sector, expanding terrestrial-satellite connectivity.
Who is involved: Orange and Telesat.
Likely next: Announcement of further partnerships in the satellite service series planned by Orange.
Orange’s decision to revive the Bercenay-en-Othe teleport by hosting ground antennas for Telesat’s Low Earth Orbit satellite network represents a concrete step in the operator’s effort to integrate satellite assets into its terrestrial infrastructure. The teleport, which previously served traditional broadcast and communication functions, is being adapted to support the emerging New Space ecosystem, allowing Orange to leverage Telesat’s LEO constellation for additional connectivity options. This collaboration is framed as the first of several planned satellite‑related infrastructure projects, indicating a broader intent to diversify beyond purely ground‑based networks. From a business perspective, the move signals how established telecoms are responding to the growing availability of LEO capacity by securing local points of presence that can facilitate backhaul, traffic offload, and service resilience, especially in underserved or remote areas. By establishing a satellite‑ready facility in north‑central France, Orange positions itself to offer hybrid connectivity solutions that combine fiber, mobile, and space‑based links. In the near term, the focus will likely be on installing and testing the Telesat antennas, validating interoperability with Orange’s core network, and evaluating the potential for commercial services that rely on this new ground‑segment capability.
What's next — scenarios
Base: Expansion of LEO partnerships (60%)
Orange increases its role as a primary terrestrial gateway for global satellite constellations.
- Success of the Telesat integration
- Announcement of the second partnership in the series
Upside: Full infrastructure transformation (25%)
The Bercenay-en-Othe site becomes a major European hub for multi-operator satellite services.
- High demand for LEO ground stations
- Additional capacity upgrades at the teleport
Downside: Slower orbital deployment (15%)
Infrastructure capacity remains underutilized due to delays in satellite constellation launches.
- Telesat launch delays
- Technical integration challenges between ground stations and LEO satellites
What to watch
- Orange's subsequent partnership announcements in the satellite sector
- Telesat's LEO satellite deployment milestones
Timeline
- — « Un pont entre l’espace et la Terre » : à Bercenay-en-Othe, la renaissance du téléport d’Orange grâce au « New Space » (Le Figaro — Économie)
Analysis — what this means
Sectors affected
- Satellite communications
- Telecommunications infrastructure
- New Space industry