MIRAMAR, Fla., April 26, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- MTN Satellite Communications (MTN), the global provider of communications, connectivity and content services to remote locations around the world, and ERZIA, the leading provider of VSAT maritime communications in Spain, today announced that their joint venture to develop a teleport in Santander Spain has been completed and is officially open. It now serves as a centralized gateway for MTN's VSAT communications with coverage over the Americas, Europe, and Asia. The facility is located in Santander, North Spain at 43 degrees 27'46''N, 3 degrees 48'18''W.

The new facility is one of the first in the world to provide C- and Ku-band commercial service as well as secure X-band service for government customers at a single location. The Santander teleport can see all of the satellites in the GEO orbit from 60W to 65E, thus covering a region from Western Australia to North America, Mediterranean Sea, Indian and Atlantic Oceans. Importantly, the new teleport is strategically located in the intersection of the coverage of Xtar satellites, therefore able to uplink and downlink from both X-band satellites.

"The combined resources of MTN and ERZIA within the Santander teleport offer efficient and innovative managed networking technologies from a new and far reaching international satellite gateway," said Richard Hadsall, CTO at MTN. "Our intent is that this new facility will lift the whole industry to a far more competitive position by creating attractive opportunities for not only MTN but for Spanish and European service providers, enterprise and even consumer subscribers."

The Santander teleport provides a significant improvement in network efficiency, reliability, and customer service that augments the MTN worldwide infrastructure of redundant teleports and dedicated fiber optic links. In addition, it has a fully manned 24/7 network operations center providing European time zone coverage and local language operators to deliver quality service to global customers.

About ERZIA Technologies, S.L.

ERZIA Tech. is a Spanish leading provider of satellite communication systems and space RF payload electronics and test systems. ERZIA is also a leading engineering firm that provides VSAT ground stations for extreme environments and harsh conditions such as the Antarctic. ERZIA is currently providing communication services to several branches of the Spanish Government, including the Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas CSIC, the Spanish Antartic Base Juan Carlos I, and Instituto Espanol de Oceanografia (IEO), equivalent to the U.S. NOAA. ERZIA is also providing RF and Power Special Checkout Systems for several European Space programs such as PAZ satellite and Asteroidfinder from Germany's DLR, along with space qualified RF power amplifiers for a broad number of space missions. The company is currently headquartered in Santander, Spain. For more information, visit www.erzia.com or email at info@erzia.com

About MTN Satellite Communications

MTN Satellite Communications (MTN) is the leading global provider of communications, connectivity, and content services to remote locations around the world. MTN's maritime VSAT solutions and global satellite communications network offer the reliability that only "Always On – Always Available" systems can provide. More than 600 vessels and land-based terminals worldwide, including cruise ships, commercial ships, offshore drilling and production sites, government and military vessels, private yachts, and ferries depend on MTN's voice and data networks to allow them to "be in the middle of nowhere and at the center of everything." Premium services include remote access for Internet, fixed and mobile phones, fax, television, onboard newspapers, banking services, direct payroll deposit for crew, and other enterprise solutions. MTN is based in Miramar, Fla. and has offices worldwide. For more information, visit www.mtnsat.com.

Press Contact:

Katherine Estacio
+1.206.838.7700 office
+1.206.390.0482 mobile
katherine.estacio@mtnsat.com

SOURCE MTN Satellite Communications