Thaicom taps Eutelsat to save orbital slot; Q3 dips
November 12, 2024
Thaicom is using an old Eutelsat satellite to protect its transmission rights to an orbital slot. The orbital position is at 50.5 degrees East which Thaicom gained from the country’s National Broadcasting & Telecommunications Commission in an October auction. However, the licence to operate from the position expires on November 27th.
The Eutelsat satellite was already on a lease with Thaicom and operated for the time being as Thaicom 9A. Thaicom has a new ‘9A’ satellite on order but it will not be ready for launch until 2025 (a small ‘micro-Geo’ satellite being built by Astranis).
The satellite being used is an old Eutelsat (36b) itself relocated to 36 degrees East from its W7 location (with Nilesat) at 7.3 degrees West. Launched on November 29th 2009 W7 has a planned life of 15 years and clearly still is enjoying life!
Eutelsat is also partnering with Thaicom on a new software-defined satellite (Thaicom 10) which the two operators will share on a 50/50 basis at Thaicom’s 119.5 degrees East position. The satellite is being built by Airbus Space Systems and should be in position in 2027. The formal agreement is between Eutelsat Asia PTE and Space Tech Innovation (STI) a subsidiary of Thaicom.
Eutelsat has said it will expand its Thai regional in-orbit assets by some 50 Gbps of incremental capacity over Asia to address surging demand for connectivity in the region. The software defined satellite’s performance, combined with the high level of flexibility in terms of coverage, bandwidth allocation, and power levels, will assure an “unparalleled” quality of service to Eutelsat’s customers in the Asian region. It will be fully compatible with Eutelsat and OneWeb’s GEO / LEO multi-orbit approach.
Meanwhile, Thaicom has announced its financial results Q3 2024.
Thaicom reported a revenue from sales and services of Baht 614 million (€16.6m) for Q3 2024, which decreased from Baht 638 million in Q2 2024 (QoQ) and Baht 623 million in Q3/2023 (YoY). This was mainly attributed to the revenue from satellite and related services that slightly decreased due to domestic clients, reflecting the transitional period of the Universal Service Obligation (USO) contracts with the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) as this transition follows the completion of USO Phase 2 leading into USO Phase 3. However, in this quarter, the Company was able to secure a long-term contract, solidifying its position in the Indian market.
Regarding telephone business abroad, share of loss of investment in joint venture has significantly improved. However, despite a slight strengthening of the Kip against the US dollar, a foreign exchange loss was still incurred as the Kip remained weaker in Q3/2024. Nevertheless, Lao Telecommunications Public Company (LTC) has shown continued improvement in performance. Net profit in Q3/2024 increased significantly both QoQ and YoY, reaped significant benefits from the tariff restructuring for telecom services implemented by The Ministry of Telecommunication and Communication of the Lao PDR.
In Q3, the company’s satellite business generated Baht 68 million in core profit excluding share of loss from telecommunications business, exceeding normal core profit by Baht 39 million.
The company’s subsidiary, IPSTAR (India) Private Limited (IPSTAR), has signed an agreement for satellite capacity with Hughes Communications India Private Limited (HCI), a provider of broadband satellite and managed network services, for satellite capacity over India on Thaicom’s satellite fleet. Under the agreement, IPSTAR India will provide satellite capacity services to HCI in India via Thaicom’s satellite network. This will enable HCI to enhance its satellite broadband, mobile backhaul, maritime and satellite IoT services to meet the growing and varied demand for satellite services in India. The agreement will initially utilise THAICOM 8’s satellite capacity with dedicated Indian coverage.
The company has also announced a partnership with INVIDI Technologies (INVIDI) (USA), a specialist in targeted, addressable advertising and innovation and PSI, Thailand’s largest satellite network and set-top box provider, to launch addressable advertising, an innovative technology that enable advertisers to deliver personalised ads to specific individuals or households in Thailand.
The company’s subsidiary, Space Tech Innovation Limited (STI), has signed an agreement with SpaceX for the launch of THAICOM 10, Thaicom’s upcoming, next generation software-defined, high throughput satellite (SD-HTS). THAICOM 10 satellite, built by Airbus Defence and Space SAS (France), will provide over 120 gigabits per second (Gbps) of capacity. The satellite will provide extended connectivity over the region for Thaicom’s customers and partners across the Asia Pacific. THAICOM 10 will be launched on SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket from Florida, USA. The satellite will operate at the 119.5 degrees East orbital slot.