Arianespace eyes 'Telkom-2' satellite launch
JAKARTA (JP): French satellite launcher company Arianespace expects PT Telkom to open a new round of negotiations over its offer to launch the state-owned telecommunications company's new satellite.
Arianespace director of the ASEAN representative office Richard Bowles said here on Thursday that talks over the launch of Telkom-2 satellite had taken place in past years but had been suspended after the financial crisis hit Indonesia in late 1997.
Bowles said that he hoped talks would recommence soon as the usual period between the signing of a contract and the actual launch took about two years.
"So far there has been no further talks with Telkom, but who knows what will happen in six months time?" he said.
Telkom-2 would need to be in place by late 2003 to replace Palapa B2, which will come to the end of its lifespan in 2004.
"We are now actively reminding them that the B2 satellite needs to be replaced for Indonesia to maintain its telecommunication systems," he told journalists in a briefing here.
He said that the average cost to launch a satellite using an Arianespace rocket ranged between $80 million and $85 million depending on the weight.
Palapa B2 is the second generation of Indonesian Palapa satellites made by the United States' Hughes Aircraft. It was launched into geostationary orbit by the Delta rocket on April 13, 1990.
The first telecommunications satellite the country sent into orbit was the Palapa A1 in 1976, also deployed using the Delta rocket. It was phased out of service in June 1985, and was replaced by the Palapa B series.
Arianespace has so far launched three of Indonesia's telecommunications satellites, making Indonesia the third largest market for the company's satellite launches in Asia after Japan and India.
Japan so far has launched 18 satellites using Arianespace's services, and India has launched 10 satellites.
The first Indonesian satellite launched by Arianespace into orbit was the Palapa C2 for PT Satelindo and PT Pasifik Satelit Nusantara (PSN) on May 15, 1996. It was deployed using the Ariane 44L launcher and weighed 2,989 kilograms.
The Palapa C2 provides telecommunication services over the Indonesian archipelago, Southeast Asia and part of China.
The second satellite, launched on Nov. 12, 1997, was the Cakrawarta-1 made by Orbital Sciences Corp.
The 1,385-kilogram satellite was launched for PT Media Citra Indostar and provides direct TV broadcast services throughout the Indonesian archipelago.
The third satellite was the Telkom-1 for PT Telkom, launched on Aug. 12, 1999.
It was built by Lockheed Martin Commercial Space Systems and weighed 2,655 kilograms at liftoff. The Telkom-1 provides a full suite of telecommunication services from television and telephony to multimedia.
Telkom-1 mainly serves the Indonesian archipelago, Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines and northern Australia. (tnt)