Ooredoo Oman has signed an agreement with energy-industry service provider Halliburton to bolster the company’s communications and connectivity for its operations in Oman’s oil fields. To meet the challenge of keeping Halliburton’s operatives connected and in touch 24/7, both on site and between remote locations, Ooredoo will employ its cutting-edge auto-tracking VSAT (very small aperture terminal) technology. The operator has been providing Halliburton with connectivity solutions since 2010, including point-to-point and leased line links, voice primary rate interface (PRI) and customized mobile technology. Ooredoo has connected Halliburton’s Adam base with a 10-kilometer fiber link from its core network.
Tarifica’s Take
As revenue growth from traditional services declines, telecom operators are searching for new sources of revenue, often in the realm of consumer services. These value-added services, which include entertainment, mobile money, and IoT applications and which have been pursued quite aggressively by MNOs recently, depend on standard mobile communications networks for data and sometimes voice/SMS connectivity. Ooredoo Oman, on the other hand, with this Halliburton initiative, is showing how an operator that has invested in advanced technology beyond the usual can profit from that investment and diversify itself.
Responsive to its market’s distinctive geographical and business environment, Ooredoo has focused resources on creating VSAT-powered communications that are effective in remote areas where terrestrial networks currently do not or cannot work. VSAT is a satellite technology that offers broadband data and voice, which are of course essential to the field operations of an oil company such as Halliburton. The kind of relationship that Ooredoo is entering into via this agreement transcends the simple service provider–customer relationship; it constitutes a purpose-built, site-specific all-encompassing communications solution.
We believe that it would be an excellent idea for operators to follow Ooredoo’s example and cultivate such partnerships by investing in cutting-edge technologies that go beyond the traditional mobile services and offer new types of connectivity in challenging environments.