Indonesia secures 20 satellite slots
JAKARTA (JP): Indonesia's satellite business has shown significant growth since its establishment in 1976. The country has thus far secured a total of 20 slots for its satellites in International Telecommunications Union (ITU) orbits.
Minister of Tourism, Post and Telecommunications Joop Ave said that Indonesia has conducted slot coordination with several countries, including Russia, which will place their satellites along with Indonesia. This coordination was established in a meeting in Moscow last month.
Indonesia is seeking to secure, at least, 24 slots for its satellites, including eight of the Palapa-B generation, four of Palapa-C generation, four Palapa Pacific Satellites, four Garuda Satellites and four Indostar Satellites.
Director General of Post and Telecommunications Djakaria Purawidjaja said last week that Indonesia should arrange the slot coordination or lose a slot when the launching of a certain satellite is delayed.
"Quarrels over a slot may occur if a country fails to launch its satellite on the right schedule and the country can't give any explanation. Such a problem happened in 1993 when Indonesia and Tonga disputed over the 134 eastern degree slot."
It was PT Pasifik Satelit Nusantara (PSN) which moved Palapa Pacific 1, the ex-Palapa-B 1 satellite, into the slot before Tonga's ex-Russian satellite. The two countries then agreed to compromise on radio-operating bands for the slot and a partnership over a second slot.
Indonesia is now preparing the launching of the Palapa-C series, the third generation of the country's telecommunications satellites, after orbiting the Palapa-A 1 and Palapa-A 2 in 1976 and 1977 respectively. The lifetime of the Palapa-A satellites was seven years, with the latest one ending in 1983.
In 1983, Indonesia started to launch the first of its second generation satellites, the Palapa-B 1, from Cape Canaveral in the United States to replace the Palapa-A 1 satellite. Palapa-B 2, which was launched in 1982 to support Palapa-B 1, failed to reach its orbit. Palapa-B 2P was then launched in 1987 to replace Palapa-B 2. In 1990, Palapa-B 2R was launched to replace Palapa-B 1.
The last of the Palapa-B satellites, the Palapa-B 4, was launched in 1992 as a substitute for the Palapa-B 2R.
Indonesia is currently operating three satellites, Palapa-B 2P, Palapa-B 2R and Palapa-B 4.
Superior
The Palapa-C satellites, the third generation manufactured by the Hughes of the United States, are superior to the earlier Palapa-A and Palapa-B series in coverage, power and flexibility.
Each of Palapa-C satellites has 34 transponders and the Palapa-B only 24. PT Satelit Palapa Indonesia (Satelindo), a join venture between DeTeMobil of Germany, PT Telkom, PT Indosat and Bimantara Group will manage satellites of the Palapa-C generation.
Palapa-C 1 is scheduled for launching in early 1996 by Atlas of the United States and Palapa-C 2 by Arianespace of France about six months later.
While Palapa-C satellites are in the orbit, the operating Palapa-B satellites will be acquired by PSN. It bought the expired Palapa-B 1 in 1991 and renamed it Palapa Pacific 1.
Meanwhile, Asia Cellular Satellite System (ACeS), a telecommunications firm equally owned by three telecommunications companies from Indonesia (PSN), Thailand (Jasmine) and the Philippines (PLDT), will also operate four geo-stationary satellites to be called the Garuda, whose slots have been also filed at ITU by the Indonesian government.
Other satellites to be operated by Indonesia include the Indostar satellites of PT Matahari Lintas Cakrawala, which will provide direct broadcast television services within the Southeast Asian region. Indostar 1 will be launched in late 1996 or early 1997 by Arianespace. (icn)