Armenia has filed a request to use the 71.4E orbital slot for its first telecoms satellite as the country appears to lean towards China to co-finance the US$250m project.
Other administrations have been given until 23 November to comment on the filing…
Armenia has filed a request to use the 71.4E orbital slot for its first telecoms satellite as the country appears to lean towards China to co-finance the US$250m project.
Other administrations have been given until 23 November to comment on the filing for the Armsat-1 satellite, according to documents submitted to the International Communications Union (ITU).
If cleared, an ITU spokesman said Armsat-1 would have to start providing services from the position before 18 October 2019 to validate its use.
He was unable to comment on the satellite’s potential partners.
In a report citing the head of Armenia’s ministry of transport and communication, state-owned news agency Armenpress said the country was talking to a number of international players to support its space programme.
It added that one of China’s largest and most influential state companies was interested in co-financing the project.
China Great Wall Industry Corporation (CGWIC), which has been supporting many emerging space nations and in May secured a US$215m deal with Sri Lanka for its first bird, and Armenia’s government were unable to comment.
Last year, SatelliteFinance reported that Armenia was in talks with Russian space agency Roscosmos about working together on a commercial spacecraft. This followed a meeting between Armenia Prime Minister Tigran Sarkisian and visiting Roscomos officials on 24 April 2012.
Six of the 15 post-Soviet republics have launched their own satellites since the collapse of the Soviet Union, and the trend is being seen across the world.
Russia and China have been dominating deals with smaller countries seeking their first satellites, although Japanese manufacturer NEC has also expressed plans to tap the growing demand.
Research from Euroconsult shows emerging space programme investments has reached US$1.8bn so far this year, including US$1.4bn related to satellite procurement. This is 2.4 times levels it recorded for 2007.
Euroconsult consultant Jean Baptiste Thépaut, who was the main contributor for its report on the trend, said: “Governments always look to maximise the economic and social benefits of their nation’s space programmes and naturally choose the development of domestic satellite communications and or Earth observation (EO) capabilities as a starting point.
“Emerging programmes listed in our report have launched a total of 30 communications and EO satellites over the past decade and 38 satellites are currently being manufactured for a launch date slated within the next four years.”
According to Euroconsult, 17 counties analysed in its report have reported a total US$950m in funding for a satellite communications programme, while 18 countries are undertaking an EO programme with associated budgets of more than US$500m by 2015.
