Indonesian telcos PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia (Telkom) and PT Indosat are to jointly order a new satellite that is to be located at 150.5E, according to local media.
The reports allege that the new satellite will replace two existing craft, Indosat’s…
Indonesian telcos PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia (Telkom) and PT Indosat are to jointly order a new satellite that is to be located at 150.5E, according to local media.
The reports allege that the new satellite will replace two existing craft, Indosat’s Palapa-C2 and Telkom-1, both of which are set to be decommissioned in 2014. The two companies are ordering the satellite together in order to reduce their individual cap ex costs. The overall cost of the satellite has not been announced but is expected to be in the region of US$200m, depending on the size of the payload.
Telkom CEO and president Rinaldi Firmansyah was quoted as saying that the new satellite, scheduled to be launched by 2014, will deliver next generation high-definition television (HDTV) as well as telecom services.
Indosat currently has two satellites in orbit, Palapa-C2 and Palapa-D, which was launched in August 2009. However Palapa-D, developed to act as a replacement for Palapa-C2, failed to reach the intended orbit following a malfunction in the firing of the third stage in the Long March rocket carrying it. The satellite’s manufacturer Thales was able to manoeuvre the satellite into its orbital slot but this has reduced its operational lifetime.
Telkom currently operates Telkom-1 and Telkom-2. The company is also expected to launch Telkom-3, which is currently under construction by ISS Reshetnev, in August 2011.
This satellite will carry 32 C-band and 10 Ku-transponders.
