Bulgaria will soon have its own dedicated satellite, providing DTH services to the country.
Bulgaria Sat, an affiliate of Bulsatcom, has commissioned Space Systems/Loral (SSL) to build the craft that will launch on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on 2016.
The satellite, known as BulgariaSat-1,will be equipped with two Ku-band FSS transponders and 30 Ku-band BBS transponders for fixed satellite and advanced TV services, such as HDTV. It’s based on the SSL 1300 satellite platform that has been used by operators including Intelsat and DirecTV.
It will have a working life of at least 15 years.
“We selected SSL to manufacture our first satellite early on, based on its history of success and reliability,” said Maxim Zayakov, chief executive officer of Bulgaria Sat. “SSL has been an excellent partner in helping us bring this project to fruition.”
SSL assisted Bulgaria Sat in obtaining all of the financing for the satellite, including export credit financing from the Export-Import Bank of the United States.