Intelsat General has been selected as a prime contractor under the U.S. government's new Custom SATCOM Solutions contract, a program that will provide satellite communications to military and other users.

The program, known as CS2, is the final segment of the new Future Commercial Satellite Communications (FCSA) procurement process, managed jointly by the Defense Information Systems Agency and the General Services Administration.

Under CS2, prime contractors will provide end-to-end, turnkey solutions to government users that include satellite capacity, terminals, other user equipment, teleports, terrestrial networks, integration and engineering services, installation, operations and maintenance.

The two earlier segments of FCSA covered transponded capacity on fixed satellites and subscription services on both fixed and mobile satellites.

"Intelsat General provides a diversified portfolio of complex services to the government sector. Being a prime contractor under CS2 will allow us to design and deploy end-to-end satellite communications solutions for our government customers in a way that is best suited to their unique needs," said Kay Sears, President of Intelsat General.

"This will streamline the overall procurement process for these agencies and provide cost-effectiveness in the long run. In addition, under CS2, we will offer government customers expanded solutions using Intelsat's global mobility broadband platform as well as the high-power spot beams of our recently announced Intelsat EpicNG satellites, the first of which is scheduled for launch in 2015."

The indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity (IDIQ) contract has an initial contract term of three years and two one-year renewal options. Under the contract, Intelsat General may bid on the wide range of satellite communications needs of a range of government agencies.

In addition to serving traditional buyers of commercial satellite capacity like the Pentagon, the new contract vehicle is expected to make custom satellite networks more available to civilian agencies for disaster response, border patrol and other needs.