SES NEW SKIES, an SES company (Paris:SESG) (LuxX:SESG) announces
that it has contracted Space Systems/Loral (SSL), a subsidiary of
Loral Space & Communications (NASDAQ:LORL), for the procurement of
NSS-14, a satellite designed to serve the growing needs of SES NEW
SKIES customers. Work on the NSS-14 program will start immediately;
terms of the contract remain confidential.
SES NEW SKIES will deploy NSS-14 over the Atlantic Ocean region at
338 degrees East, enabling the incumbent NSS-7 satellite to move to a
new orbital position further enhancing SES NEW SKIES ability to
support its customers´ global satellite requirements. 338 degrees East
is one of the most highly demanded orbital locations for
trans-Atlantic traffic serving the Americas, Europe and Africa.
NSS-14 will be a hybrid satellite featuring 52 x 36 MHz equivalent
C-band transponders and 72 x 36 MHz equivalent Ku-band transponders, a
substantial increase in the total capacity available at 338 degrees
East The state-of-the-art spacecraft has been specifically designed
for its orbital location, with C-Band beams serving the eastern
hemisphere of Europe/Africa, full America´s coverage as well as a
global beam to support mobile and maritime customers. Four high power,
regional Ku-Band beams will provide service to Europe/Middle East,
West Africa, North America and South America with extensive
cross-strapping between C- and Ku-band transponders providing enhanced
connectivity. SES NEW SKIES has sought the advice of customers on the
current NSS-7 spacecraft in designing the beams on NSS-14, resulting
in expanded and enhanced coverage in all regions. Government
applications will benefit from sophisticated command encryption. The
satellite will be equipped with an ion propulsion system ensuring a
minimum life of at least 15 years in orbit. At a launch weight of 5800
kilograms, NSS-14 will be compatible with all relevant launch vehicle
providers, and a booster for the planned launch in the fourth quarter
of 2010 will be announced at a later stage.
Rob Bednarek, President and CEO of SES NEW SKIES, states: "338
degrees East is a neighbourhood that is particularly important to our
customers, so it is with great pleasure that we underline our
commitment to their business with this new procurement. Our ambitious
expansion plans - NSS-9 this year, NSS-12 in 2009 and NSS-14 in 2010 -
will add more than 200 transponders to our fleet and provide our
customers around the world with new, state-of-the art satellite
capacity to grow their businesses. SES NEW SKIES looks forward to
working with Space Systems/Loral on the NSS-14 mission, the second
procurement by an SES company with SS/L(1)."
(1) In May 2007 SES NEW SKIES contracted SSL for the manufacture
of NSS-12 scheduled for launch in 2009
About SES NEW SKIES
SES NEW SKIES is an SES company (Paris:SESG) (LuxX:SESG) offering
satellite communication services to a range of customers including
telecommunications providers, broadcasters, corporations and
governments around the world. SES NEW SKIES owns and operates a global
fleet of seven satellites in orbit, with two additional spacecraft
under construction (NSS-9 and NSS-12) and ground facilities around the
world. Headquartered in The Hague, the company has offices in Hong
Kong, Johannesburg, Sao Paulo, Singapore, Sydney and Washington, D.C.
In addition to SES NEW SKIES, SES wholly owns the market-leading
satellite operators SES ASTRA in Europe and SES AMERICOM in North
America, as well as 90% of SES SIRIUS and strategic participations in
Ciel in Canada and Quetzsat in Mexico. SES provides outstanding
satellite communications solutions via a global fleet of 38 satellites
in 25 orbital locations. Further information on the company is
available at www.ses-newskies.com and on SES at www.ses.com
About Space Systems/Loral
Based in Palo Alto, California, Space Systems/Loral designs and
builds satellites and spacecraft systems for commercial and government
customers around the world. As the leading provider of high-power
commercial satellites, the company works closely with satellite
operators to deliver spacecraft for a broad range of services
including direct-to-home television, digital audio radio, broadband
Internet, and digital multimedia broadcasting. With a 50-year history
and more than 1,400 on-orbit years logged, SS/L helps customers meet
business objectives with advanced solutions based on space-proven
heritage designs. SS/L is a subsidiary of satellite communications
company Loral Space & Communications (NASDAQ: LORL). For more
information, visit www.loral.com.