10 September 2010 :: National Space Centre Ltd has today announced the re-opening of Elfordstown Earthstation, one of Europe’s first teleports, to the Global Satellite Market at IBC (International Broadcasting Convention), Amsterdam, after several years lying unused.
Elfordstown Earthstation is located near Midleton, Co Cork, in the South of Ireland, (lat/long 51 57.192N 8 10.55W ). Elfordstown originally entered service in 1984, commissioned by Eircom in association with Eutelsat as one of the first state-of-the-art broadcast sites in Europe. It is the closest westerly positioned Teleport for connecting to the USA.
National Space Centre took the Elfordstown facility over from Eircom in January 2010, and has started work on an multi-million euro expansion and upgrade program, which involves the upgrading of the existing facility to modern commercial spec, and the installation of new antennae.
The project was welcomed by the World Teleport Association (WTA). “World Teleport Association is delighted by the news that Ireland’s Elfordstown Teleport is being recommissioned, and that it will provide a range of satellite services to the markets served by teleports. We hope the marketplace and institutional communities will embrace the project,” said Robert A. Bell, Executive Director, WTA.
“The teleport that is being reintroduced in Ireland represents another step in the evolution of the teleport industry and we welcome this development from our member, the National Space Centre,” said Chris Russell, Chairman, WTA
Speaking in Amsterdam, National Space Centre CEO, Rory Fitzpatrick said “National Space Centre has started work on an ambitious refurbishment and expansion program that will see world class, carrier grade teleport facilities being provided from Ireland. It is an exciting day for the global satellite industry, to see the Elfordstown facility return to service.”
National Space Centre is an independent teleport operator so Elfordstown can partner with any Government, large corporation, or multi-national institution.”