[Satellite News 10-08-09] As Telenor Satellite Broadcasting (TSB) moves closer to the scheduled launch of its Thor 6 satellite, the company is turning its attention to Thor 7, Cato Halsaa, vice president and CEO of TSB, said.

            The Thor 6 satellite has arrived at the Guiana Spaceport in Kourou for its scheduled launch by Arianespace at the end of October. The satellite will replace the Thor 3 satellite, which is set to retire in 2010, as well as provide additional capacity for expansion. Thor 6 satellite is based on the Thales Alenia Space Spacebus 4000B2 platform and fitted with 36 Ku-band transponders. TSB plans to use 16 transponders to serve Nordic countries, and 20 transponders will be positioned to serve the growing broadcasting demands within Central and Eastern Europe.

            “We have sold more capacity before launch than we expected,” Halsaa said. “We are looking to add more capacity for Central and Eastern Europe. The demand has been quicker in Eastern Europe, but we will need more capacity to grow the 1 degree West hotspot.”

            Once Thor 6 is launched, the operator will turn its attention to Thor 7 satellite. “We see a need for more capacity and we are evaluating the use of Ka-band frequencies for any new satellites. Presently, our customers are Ku-band, but we think we can move some of our VSAT customers to Ka-band. On the technical side, there are various new opportunities. You can build and launch very small satellites, that was not possible a couple of years ago, but it is more likely we would look for something bigger, Halsaa said.

            However, the spending plans could complicated because TSB’s parent company, Telenor, has undertaken a massive capital expenditure program in India. “The financial crisis has obviously made things more difficult for prospective large capital projects like new satellites,” Halsaa said. “Telenor is primarily a mobile operator with 168 million subscribers around the world, and their major project is to build 60,000 base stations in India and that is huge project. To build this many base stations and keep a good credit rating is a challenge. … Our satellite project is in the middle of this, so it could take time to get the necessary funding. We will need a lot of ingenuity. The result of this is that the satellite project will need to be supported via a very robust investment case.”

            TSB may need to find partners to help fund Thor 7. “We will probably look for partners in some way. If you look at this from a Telenor point of view, this is not a high priority. I think they would be happy for costs to be shared, so shared costs for Thor 7 are a definite possibility. Intelsat would be an obvious partner. We share frequency rights at 1 degree West. It will be difficult to get straight Telenor financing the way we have before, although Telenor has been very good in supporting our satellite replacement program,” he said.