Two Indonesian Satellites Call Dibs on the Same Orbital Slot

摘要

Indonesia's Bank Rakyat Indonesia (BRI) has set itself on a collision course with Indonesia's Indosat satellite operator by ordering a satellite to be placed into the same orbital slot as a satellite ordered by Indosat a year ago, industry officials said. BRI announced April 28 that Space Systems/Loral (SSL) will build the C- and Ku-band BRISat spacecraft, which will be launched in 2016 aboard a European Ariane 5 rocket. Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, who has backed the BRI project, attended the contract signing ceremony in Jakarta. The announcement comes after PT Indosat ordered the Palapa E satellite from Dulles, Virginia-based Orbital Sciences Corp. in mid-2013, citing license approval from the Indonesian Communications Ministry.