Lockheed Martin, ACeS sign $1b satellite deal

Lockheed Martin, ACeS sign $1b satellite deal

JAKARTA (JP): PT Asia Cellular Satellite System (ACeS), a
Jakarta-based telecommunications firm, signed yesterday a
contract with a U.S. defense contractor, Lockheed Martin
Corporation, to manufacture a region-wide cellular mobile
satellite telecommunications system.

The contract, worth US$1 billion, was signed by ACeS's chief
executive officer, Adi Rahman Adiwoso, and Lockheed's president
for space and missile sector, Vance Coffman.

ACeS, was established in February by three telecommunications
firms -- PT Pasifik Satelit Nusantara of Indonesia, Philippines
Long Distance Telephone Co. of the Philippines and Jasmine
International Public Co. Ltd. of Thailand-- as an attempt to
provide an Asian solution to a rapidly growing need for
telecommunications infrastructure.

ACeS will operate in telecommunications which will use four
geo-stationary satellites to be called Garuda.

The project, covering the most important region in Asia, will
allow any person with a handheld device to directly communicate
with another person carrying a similar device within the
satellite coverage and, through ground station gateways and
normal public switch telephone networks, to any person with a
cellular or normal fixed telephone anywhere in the world.

The satellite's coverage will encompass India, Bangladesh,
Myanmar, China Korea, Southern Japan, Hong Kong, Taiwan,
Indochina and the ASEAN countries.

"The launching of the satellites is expected to commence in
early 1998, while commercial operation will likely start by mid-
1998," Adi told reporters after the signing ceremony, which was
also attended by Minister of Tourism, Post and Telecommunications
Joop Ave, State Minister of Research and Technology B.J. Habibie
and U.S. Ambassador to Indonesia Robert L. Barry.

"The satellites will be launched either by Proton of Russia or
Ariane of France. We will be still studying this," he said.

He said that ACeS put up only $150 million as an equity in the
project, while the rest is financed with loans arranged by PT
Swadinamika Multi Finance, a Jakarta-based finance company.

The contract with Lockheed Martin which is based on a turn-key
project also includes a network control center to monitor and
control telecommunications traffic, a satellite control center to
track the satellite orbital path and three gateways linking the
system with three public switch telephone networks.

One gateway will be located in Indonesia and managed by
Pasifik Satelit Nusantara which is the national service provider
within Indonesia. Another gateway will be located in Thailand and
the third one in the Philippines.

Meanwhile, PT Satelindo, the operator of satellites of the
Palapa-C generation, announced yesterday the launching of Palapa-
C1 in January 1996.

Satelindo's president, Iwa Sewaka, said his company and
Pasifik Satelit Nusantara signed a contract agreement with Martin
Marietta Commercial Launch Services of the United States on May
12 for the launching of the Palapa-C1 satellite with the Atlas
IIAS rocket.

Iwa said the launch will be conducted during the period
between Jan. 3 and Jan. 31, 1996.

The contract is worth $92 million, including levies imposed by
the U.S. government, he said.

Palapa-C1 was originally set to be launched by the France-
based Arianespace. Due to a double-failure at Arianespace, the
company has rescheduled Palapa-C1's launching from October-
November this year to May 1996. As Palapa-C1 will now be launched
by Martin Marietta, Satelindo has arranged for Arianespace to
launch Palapa-C2 in May, 1996. (icn)