Thai satellite operator Thaicom is looking to launch the Thaicom-8 satellite by early 2016, with Thaicom-9 also in the pipeline.
“Thaicom-8 or [satellite] IPSTAR 2 is a possibility,” a spokesperson at Thaicom told SatelliteFinance today. “However,…
Thai satellite operator Thaicom is looking to launch the Thaicom-8 satellite by early 2016, with Thaicom-9 also in the pipeline.
“Thaicom-8 or [satellite] IPSTAR 2 is a possibility,” a spokesperson at Thaicom told SatelliteFinance today. “However, there are two existing pre-conditions that have to be fulfilled. The first is that IPSTAR will have to reach the 40% utilisation rate and the second is that IPSTAR 2 must have firm pre-launch commitments for at least 50% of its capacity.”
The spokesperson added that the company is working on plans for Thaicom-9 for the 50.5 degrees east orbital slot.
It had been reported by local media that Thaicom expects to finalise a deal in March to sell bandwidth in India. While the spokesperson did not confirm the timeframe, he said that they were in discussions with their Indian client “and those discussions look very promising.”
As SatelliteFinance reported last week, Thaicom has entered into a new three-party agreement to provide satellite broadband capacity in China via its IPSTAR satellite. Thaicom already has a partnership in place with China Telecom Satellite (CTS), but it will now sell all IPSTAR’s broadband capacity available for China to Hong Kong-based Synertone.
The use of IPSTAR in China accounts for 24% of its total capacity.
“The sale of IPSTAR bandwidth in China will provide a wide range of benefits for all parties to the deal,” said Thaicom’s CEO and chairman Suphajee Suthumpun in a statement last week.
“Obviously for Thaicom it means that we have reached one of our most important goals. With capacity utilization in China, we have gone far beyond the break-even point of IPSTAR.
“For our partner in China, the deal will provide a valuable asset to expand communications infrastructure throughout the country, and the ability to rapidly provide services to un-served and underserved areas using IPSTAR services and solutions.”
