Turkey’s state-owned satellite operator Turksat has hired an international auditing firm to prepare an IPO of an undisclosed size. The news comes just a few days after ILS launched its latest satellite, the Japanese-built Turksat 4B.
Turkey’s state-owned satellite operator Turksat has hired an international auditing firm to prepare an IPO of an undisclosed size, according to a report citing CEO Ensar Gul.
He was quoted saying the group is open to working with other companies on the listing, and that timing will depend on global market conditions.
Turksat did not respond to requests for comment.
The news comes a few days after Russia’s International Launch Services successfully launched its Turksat 4B satellite, following delays stemming from a Proton rocket failure in May.
Built by Japan’s Mitsubishi Electric (MELCO), Turksat 4B will cover a wide geographic region between west China and east England with 36 transponders at 50E. It has a relatively lengthy life span of 30 years.
Melco helped train Turkish engineers as part of the manufacturing contract, and they are now expected to transfer over to work on Turksat 6A, a US$200m project that will launch the first telecoms satellite to be fully built in the country in 2020.
Turksat is eager to expand into new markets, and Gul told reporters in June that it was preparing RFPs for two new satellites in 2018 – Turksat 5A at 31E and Turksat 5B at its 42E hotspot – as it looks to operate a minimum of six birds in the near term.
Apart from the recently launched Turksat 4B, it currently operates the Thales-built Turksat 2A and Turksat 3A at 42E, which were launched in 2001 and 2008 respectively, and the Melco-built Turksat 4B that is also at 42E and was launched in 2013.
Turksat was founded in July 2004 when it was spun out of formerly state-owned telco Turk Telecom, which went on to list 15% of its shares on Istanbul’s stock exchange four years later after being privatised.
The Borsa Istanbul (BIST) is Turkey’s sole stock exchange and has been gearing up for its own IPO, however, plans to list next year face delays because of low valuations and political uncertainty. The country is currently being ruled by a provisional government until its snap election can take place on 1 November.
