As the clock ticks to the October-scheduled launch of Orion 2, destined for the 12 degrees West mid-Atlantic position, there is no sign of any agreement between the satellite’s operator, Loral, and Eutelsat, which claims the rights to frequencies at the nearby 12.5 degrees West position.

It is known that Eutelsat director-general Giuliano Berretta would like to see more support coming out of Brussels for Eutelsat’s position. Eutelsat views the 12.5 degrees slot as the best opportunity to provide a gateway between Europe and the US. While the Paris-based operator professes to be willing to engage in talks with Loral, its position is that it has an absolute right to use the slot and it has no need to make concessions. That is why the dispute now appears to be escalating with talk of bringing it before the World Trade Organisation. Berretta recently was quoted as saying that the dispute was "a trade issue that should be brought to Brussels". Berretta has previously gone on record as saying that Loral’s claims to 12 degrees were "based on nothing" and that co-ordination was not possible.

While Loral’s original filing for the slot dates from February 1994 (Eutelsat’s dates from January 1995), the ITU notified the FCC in October of that year that the information in the filing was incomplete. Loral claims that the original date of the filing is the relevant one.