Eutelsat will redeem $360 million in bonds from bondholders in Eutelsat Americas.
Nearly two years of uncertainty about where the next-generation GPS satellite augmentation payload would find a home in geostationary orbit has apparently ended.
The acquisition gives Eutelsat a major beachhead in the robust Latin American market alongside rivals Intelsat, SES, Telesat and others.
The purchase gives Eutelsat a major presence in what industry officials see as perhaps the fastest-growing region for bandwidth demand.
Eutelsat is buying Mexican operator Satmex for $831 million in cash plus the assumption of $311 million in Satmex debt to establish a big position in the growing Latin American market.
The Satmex decision means the contract that Satmex and ABS signed remains intact.
Satmex Chief Financial Officer Juan Garcia said Satmex 7 “is fully funded” and can be purchased from Satmex’s operating cash flows between now and its planned launch in early 2015.
Russia’s Proton Breeze M heavy-lift rocket successfully returned to flight March 27 with launch of the Satmex 8 telecommunications satellite.
Satmex has again revised upward its estimate of how long the Satmex 5 satellite can remain in orbit.
The Satmex 8 telecommunications satellite arrived at Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan in preparation for launch aboard a Russian-built Proton Breeze M rocket booked through International Launch Services, the satellite’s builder, Space Systems/Loral of Palo Alto, Calif.
Satellite fleet operator Satmex of Mexico said satellite builder Boeing has revised upward its estimate of how much longer the Satmex 5 satellite can remain in orbit, giving Satmex more breathing room as it awaits the launch of the replacement Satmex 8.
PARIS — Satellite fleet operator Satmex said it remains confident that a Russian Proton rocket will launch its Satmex 8 satellite by December, giving the company sufficient time to transfer customers to it before Satmex 5, which the new spacecraft is replacing, runs out of fuel as early as late February.
Satellite operator Satmex of Mexico awarded Optimal Satcom of Reston, Va., a multiyear contract for satellite capacity management software and support, Optimal Satcom announced July 11. The value of the contract was not disclosed.
PARIS — Satellite operator Satmex of Mexico says it has not yet committed to buying a second of two planned satellites as part of a broader contract involving Asia Broadcast Satellite (ABS) and manufacturer Boeing that was announced in March.
WASHINGTON — The decision by regional satellite operators Asia Broadcast Satellite (ABS) of Bermuda and Hong Kong and Satmex of Mexico to join forces to purchase four Boeing-built telecommunications satellites employing a revolutionary design is one way smaller players can realize the scale economies usually reserved for larger fleet operators, industry officials said.
PARIS — Satellite fleet operator Satmex of Mexico, which exited bankruptcy in May with a $325 million loan, on Nov. 17 reported a slight decline in core satellite-lease revenue for the nine months ending Sept. 30.
The Mexican government intends to use its three-satellite, billion-dollar contract with Boeing Space and Intelligence Systems to restructure its relations with Mexico’s commercial satellite operator, Satmex, by reducing or eliminating the government’s demand for free Satmex bandwidth, a Mexican government official said.
LES MENUIRES, France — Satellite fleet operator Satmex of Mexico will launch its Satmex 8 telecommunications satellite aboard an International Launch Services (ILS) Proton rocket between July and September 2012, Satmex and ILS announced Dec. 29.
PARIS — Satellite fleet operator Satmex of Mexico has received approval from its bondholders to spend up to $100 million on a new Satmex 8 telecommunications satellite in return for increasing the interest rate Satmex pays on bonds due in 2011, a development that enabled Satmex to sign a firm satellite-construction contract with Space Systems/Loral, according to statements from the companies.
Satmex has paid $2 million to manufacturer Space Systems/Loral to begin work on a Satmex 8 satellite to replace Satmex 5, whose fuel will run out in 31 months.