Globalstar Helps Safeguard Africa’s Endangered Species

Globalstar Europe Satellite Services Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of Globalstar, Inc. (NYSE American: GSAT), the next-generation international telecommunications infrastructure and technology provider, announced today that its IoT satellite technology is being used to protect multiple endangered species of wildlife in Africa.

Leading-edge satellite-enabled tracking devices incorporating Globalstar’s small and lightweight ST100 chipset are being used to monitor rhinoceros, part of a widespread concerted effort to protect these nearly extinct wild animals from illegal poachers.

Globalstar Value Added Reseller, Wintec Solutions, a specialist technology and solutions provider with extensive experience in animal tracking for wildlife conservation, recently carried out this project.

Rhinoceros are the subject of widespread illegal killing by poachers across Africa. Wintec Solutions deployed GSatSolar™, the latest addition to Globalstar’s IoT satellite tracking solutions portfolio. The innovative Sun-powered tracking device GSatSolar is built around Globalstar’s economical ST100 satellite IoT transmitter.

Low-cost and simple to integrate, GSatSolar is a small and rugged satellite IoT tracker ideal for wildlife monitoring. They fit rhinos with the device via ear tagging or collar, and they are also exploring other novel ways of deploying the devices. The device is also suitable for livestock tracking.

Nature reserves in Africa are expansive, spanning as many as 20,000 hectares in remote bush regions. Criminals and poachers often breach their perimeter fencing in an attempt to gain access to and kill the animals within.

Establishing reserves, which typically house as many as 200 free-ranging rhinos, usually occurs in locations where a GSM mobile signal does not exist. Only satellite communications can provide always-on connectivity to enable uninterrupted monitoring of the animals.

Significant advantages of GSatSolar are its small size and lightweight, so as not to irritate the animal, as well as its robust structure. Furthermore, its low cost makes the solution easily scalable for tracking large herds of wildlife and farm stock.

“Its physical attributes make GSatSolar a game changer and transform the possibilities for wildlife conservation and livestock management,” says Rene Winter, Director of Wintec Solutions.

Globalstar-enabled solutions are at the forefront of today’s conservation activities in Africa; Wintec Solutions is additionally playing a role in the preservation of other African species. Researchers at the Giraffe Conservation Foundation are using the system to monitor giraffe migration, and to keep safeguarding tabs on animals that have been reintroduced into the wild.

“We are currently trialing GSatSolar ear tags on giraffes in Namibia. The first units were deployed in June this year and, while field trials are still ongoing, the data received so far are very promising. We’re looking forward to deploying more units in the future and testing them in different countries," said Dr Courtney Marneweck, Science Data Coordinator at Giraffe Conservation Foundation.

Wintec Solutions is also deploying satellite technology and Globalstar-enabled animal tags in collaboration with veterinary authorities and research students for wild buffalo protection activities in South Africa’s Kruger National Park.

Conservationists and government authorities are monitoring buffalo migration to understand and mitigate the potential spread of Bovine Tuberculosis. In another project, they are testing the application of Globalstar-enabled trackers on pangolins, yet another severely endangered species.

The tracking platform UI developed by Wintec Solutions includes an informative mapping portal that tracks the animals’ individual and group movements. Monitoring the rhino, or other wildlife, also informs as to grazing habits, locations of the best nutrition, seasonal breeding habits, as well as the animals’ general health and well-being.

“Our wildlife preservation activities take place well beyond the reach of GSM mobile; Globalstar’s satellite network, with its ubiquitous reach and reliability, is a fundamental enabler in the operations being carried out to protect endangered species,” said Winter.

“Globalstar created the ST100 transmitter to meet the widespread need for easy-to-integrate, low-cost, and lightweight monitoring devices that leverage satellite technology and the Internet of Things,” commented Mark O’Connell, General Manager at Globalstar EMEA & APAC. “We are delighted that solutions developed through the inventiveness and commitment of our partner Wintec Solutions are now playing such a pivotal role in the vital wildlife conservation activities today taking place across Africa,” he added.

About Wintec Solutions

Established in 2008, Wintec Solutions is a multichannel high-service distributor, focusing on premium, innovative brands and solutions. Based in Johannesburg, South Africa, Wintec Solutions specializes in supplying Sub-Saharan Africa with power, telecoms, and IoT, solutions and support.

The company excels in high-level negotiations, solutions selling, and facilitating business and consumer industries. Wintec Solutions offers reverse logistics, warehousing, bonded facility and export for easy facilitation to multiple destinations cost-effectively.

With extensive warehousing, barcoding, and packaging facilities, many leading international brands rely on Wintec Solutions to facilitate their channel and sales business in Africa.

About Globalstar, Inc.

Globalstar empowers its customers to connect, transmit, and communicate in smarter ways – easily, quickly, securely, and affordably – offering reliable satellite and terrestrial connectivity services as an international telecom infrastructure provider.

The Company’s LEO satellite constellation assures secure data transmission for connecting and protecting assets, transmitting critical operational data, and saving lives – from any location – for consumers, businesses, and government agencies across the globe.

Globalstar’s terrestrial spectrum, Band 53, and its 5G variant, n53, offers carriers, cable companies, and system integrators a versatile, fully licensed channel for private networks with a growing ecosystem to improve customer wireless connectivity, while Globalstar’s XCOMP technology offers significant capacity gains in dense wireless deployments.

In addition to SPOT GPS messengers, Globalstar offers next-generation IoT hardware and software products for efficiently tracking and monitoring assets, processing smart data at the edge, and managing analytics with cloud-based telematics solutions to drive safety, productivity, and profitability. For more information, visit www.globalstar.com and connect with us on LinkedIn.

For media information:

Gavan Murphy
Director of Marketing, EMEA and APAC
Globalstar Europe Satellite Services Ltd.
[email protected]

Cynthia Ritchie
White Tiger Communications
[email protected]
+44 (0)20 4518 7555