The proposed $285 million sale of Spacecom to the Chinese-backed Luxembourg Space Telecommunications (Xinwei) is in doubt following last week’s explosion of SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket on the launch pad.
Spacecom has confirmed it has begun measures to recover funds invested in the project, but in a statement confirmed: “a condition of Spacecom’s merger with companies from the Beijing Xinwei Group announced on September 24, 2016 was the AMOS-6’s successful launch and completion of in orbit testing”.
David Pollack, Spacecom CEO and president, said, “Spacecom has crafted a plan of action which represents the foundation upon which we shall recover from Amos 6’s loss. Our programme includes, among other measures, exploring the possibility of procuring and launching a replacement satellite. Working quickly and efficiently, management is engaging with current and potential partners to move forward.”
Some of Spacecom’s current Ku-band clients on AMOS-2 that were to be relocated to Amos 6 will be relocated to Amos 3, a process already begun by a major client, the Israeli DTH platform Yes.
Spacecom is planning to help find capacity on other satellites or possibly on a satellite that will be relocated, either permanently or temporarily, to the 4 degrees West orbital position.
Xinwei has been updated on the loss of the satellite and the two are now looking at amending the current agreement.
