Telesat and Canadian Strategic Missions Corporation announce strategic collaboration agreement to ensure Canada’s sovereign energy future
Press Release
Ottawa, Ontario – May 26, 2026 (CANSEC) – Canadian Strategic Missions Corporation (CSMC), a prominent space and defence company, and Telesat (Nasdaq and TSX: TSAT), one of the world’s largest and most innovative satellite operators, today announced the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to collaborate on the deployment and operation of CSMC’s micro nuclear reactor technologies using Telesat’s sovereign low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite network, Telesat Lightspeed. The announcement took place at CANSEC, Canada’s leading defence and security exhibition.
Under the MOU, the companies will work together to deploy highly secure satellite communications that can support the remote monitoring, operation, and sustainment of CSMC’s micro nuclear reactors across both defence and civilian applications. Secure connectivity is a critical enabler of these systems, supporting operational oversight, data integrity, and resilience in extreme and high-latitude environments. Together, the companies aim to enable advanced, made-in-Canada energy solutions in the Arctic and other remote environments, where reliable power and connectivity are crucial.
“This collaboration reflects the strength of Canadian companies coming together to solve some of the country’s most strategic challenges,” said Daniel Sax, Chief Executive Officer of CSMC. “By pairing CSMC’s rapidly advancing micro nuclear reactor technology with Telesat’s proven leadership in space communications, we are laying the foundation for Canadian-built solutions that enhance energy security, operational resilience, and long-term capability in the North.”
Reliable power, secure communications and trusted domestic technologies are all critical to strengthening Canadian sovereignty in the Arctic. This collaboration brings those elements together.
CSMC is developing micro nuclear reactors designed to provide safe, reliable, and scalable power for remote communities, critical infrastructure, and strategic missions, while Telesat provides the highly resilient, secure, low-latency connectivity required to support their safe and efficient operation.
“Telesat has a long history of delivering mission-critical communications for governments, enterprises, and communities, including in Canada’s North,” said Dan Goldberg, Telesat’s President and CEO. “CSMC is advancing highly relevant energy capabilities, and we look forward to supporting their deployment and operations with secure, resilient connectivity in remote and Arctic environments.”
The MOU establishes a framework for technical discussions, potential pilot activities, and coordinated engagement with government and industry stakeholders. Any future commercial or operational arrangements would be subject to definitive agreements. The announcement at CANSEC underscores the growing role of domestic innovation in advancing secure infrastructure, Arctic capability, national technological leadership, and enabling the deployment of critical, next-generation energy systems.
This is an interesting pairing. If an objective of the development of micro nuclear reactors for remote communities and defense facilities is deployment of a sealed no-maintenance unit with remote monitoring and operation, a reliable and secure communications network will be an absolute necessity. The low-latency offered by a low-Earth orbit constellation is less of a factor in this use case, but secure communications and, to use the watch-word of the day, sovereign control over the network would surely be bedrock requirements for the communications side of such a power generation system.