Satellite business in Asia-Pacific booming
Satellite business in Asia-Pacific booming
By I. Christianto
PALO ALTO, California (JP): The Asia Pacific region will
remain the major market for the world's satellite manufacturers
in the coming years.
Demand for satellites continues to grow in the region and
dozens of them will be ready for orbit by the year 2000.
Executive director for marketing and sales of Space
System/Loral (SSL), a leading aerospace company of the United
States, Ron Dalebout, said the Asia Pacific region was currently
the fastest growing market in satellite communications in the
world.
"There are a large number of satellites under construction to
be launched in the next two years. That's satisfied needs," he
told The Jakarta Post during an inspection of SSL's 1.4 million
square-meter facility by Minister of Tourism, Post and
Telecommunications Joop Ave here Wednesday.
He said seven satellites had been prepared by SSL to orbit the
Asia Pacific region by the end of 1998 and up to nine others
within the following two-year period.
There would be a higher level of demand and additional
satellite requirements from the region following the rapid growth
of the Asia Pacific economies, he added.
Director General of Post and Telecommunications Djakaria
Purawidjaja said that within the Asia Pacific, Southeast Asian
nations would emerge the largest satellite users.
"It is estimated that Southeast Asian countries will need 100
satellite transponders by the year 2000. If transponders are
worth US$5 million each, investment will reach at least $500
million," he said. "That's only within the Southeast Asian
region," he added.
As a result of the rapid growth in the number of satellites to
be operated in Asia, competition among satellite manufacturers
will increase.
Dalebout said that SSL had to compete with the famous Hughes
Space and Communications (HSC) of the U.S and Lockheed Martin in
winning the orders from the Asia Pacific rim.
HSC, the biggest satellite supplier in the region, is the
manufacturer of Indonesia's Palapa satellite series. Other
producers include Lockheed and Aerospatiale and Matra Marconi of
Europe.
SSL has so far manufactured more than 20 spacecraft for a wide
range of firms from the U.S., Japan, China, Laos, the
Philippines, Thailand and Indonesia.
More launches
Indonesia will launch at least four more satellites within
the next two years after the launching of PT Media Citra
Indostar's direct-to-home Cakrawarta satellite by an Ariane
rocket next month.
The state-owned PT Telkom, PT Asia Cellular Satellite (ACeS),
PT MultiMedia Asia (M2A) and PT Satelindo also plan to launch
their respective satellites by 1999.
M2A, 27 percent owned by the state-owned PT Indosat and 73
percent by PT Pasifik Satelit Nusantara, will launch the M2A
satellite in June 1999. The satellite will serve voice, data and
Internet services. Through the satellite, telephone investment
per line will be $850 while air time will be as low as 10 U.S.
cents per minute within the satellite coverage.
The M2A satellite, constructed by SSL, will provide multimedia
digital telecommunications services through small fixed antennas
directly to users with Asia-wide coverage. The system, scheduled
to begin operation in 1999, will serve up to four million users
in Indonesia, Southeast Asia, Australia, China, Korea and Japan.
Telkom and ACeS will also launch in 1999 the Telkom-1 and
Garuda satellites which are being made by Lockheed Martin of the
U.S.
Minister Joop said the satellite projects showed Indonesia was
prepared for the multimedia era.
"Though many of our people are still poor, we have been
successful in empowering some people in the satellite industry,"
he said, recognizing the cooperation between Indonesian firms and
U.S. spacecraft manufacturers.
He invited Bangladesh, Vietnam, Myanmar and other
Asian nations to join Indonesia's satellite operators. "The
opportunity is there," he said.