Local reports claim that Malaysian satellite operator Measat is looking to acquire two commercial satellite communications from Boeing Defense, Space & Security.
Boeing submitted a request for proposal (RFP) to supply the satellites, Dennis Muilenburg,…
Local reports claim that Malaysian satellite operator Measat is looking to acquire two commercial satellite communications from Boeing Defense, Space & Security.
Boeing submitted a request for proposal (RFP) to supply the satellites, Dennis Muilenburg, CEO of Boeing Defense, Space & Security, reportedly told Malaysian news agency Bernama. A spokeswoman for Boeing confirmed this information but declined to comment further, while Measat refused to comment on the report.
Muilenburg pointed out that three of the four Measat satellites currently in orbit had already been delivered by Boeing (Measat-3, Africasat-1 and Africasat-2). He added that there would be, in the long term, an insatiable demand for commercial satellite communications bandwidth, particularly in Asia-Pacific.
Increased demand would provide some relief, as Boeing’s Network & Space Systems unit, part of its Defense, Space & Security subsidiary, saw its revenues fall by 17% to US$7.02bn in the first nine months of the year.
Earnings took an even greater hit, down 40% in the third quarter, from US$252m in 2009 to US$152m in 2010, and down 29% for the year to date, from US$698m to US$493m.
Concerning Measat, the company was recently delisted from the Bursa Malaysia Securities after Telekom Malaysia (TM), the country’s incumbent telco, agreed to sell its 15.4% stake to billionaire Ananda Krishnan for MYR252.1m (US$81m).
Last July, Krishnan confirmed to the Bursa Malaysia that he intended to acquire the remaining 40% of Measat he does not already own from minority shareholders for MYR4.20 (US$1.34) per share and then to take it private. The total transaction was estimated to cost Krishnan about MYR668m (US$214.5m).
The privatisation is expected to allow Krishnan to spend around US$1bn over the next two or three years to enable the satellite operator to significantly gain scale, according to local reports.
