Chinese investors eye satellite project
Chinese investors eye satellite project
A Chinese company has vowed to speed up its satellite development project in Laos, after getting the green light from the government earlier this year.
Linhai Group Chairman Dr Wu Weilin and his delegation paid a courtesy visit to Prime Minister Thongsing Thammavong in Vientiane on Wednesday as part of the group's effort to push forward the satellite development project in Laos.
Chengdu Linhai Electronics Co., Ltd. signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Lao government earlier this year to cooperate on the construction of a satellite communications park in Laos, with a satellite set to operate for commercial purposes in the aerospace 126 E orbital slot.
Chengdu Linhai Electronics Company will hold a 70 percent share of the US$960 million project while the Lao government will hold the remaining 30 percent share, according to the MOU.
The Chinese firm announced this week that it is now preparing to establish a local enterprise to manage and operate the investment project. Once the legal documents have been finalised, the company will begin construction of the industrial park and fledgling satellite industry in Laos.
The company is one of the largest commercial enterprises in China. It provides communications services, short-wave communications, satellite communications, network communications, software radios, GPS navigation equipment, high-speed digital signal processing software, and other advanced communications systems.
The company also offers enterprise solutions, which include designing, implementing, and managing integrated communications networks for businesses and government bodies, designing and delivering fully-integrated broadband communication solutions.
Under the MOU, the Chinese company and the Lao government will cooperate to build a factory that will manufacture satellite equipment and various items for electronic communications. They will also set up an Institute for Science Educational Research and Technology Aerospace to train the highly skilled personnel required for the project.
The Ministry of Post and Telecommunications announced earlier this year that in cooperation with China, Laos plans to launch a satellite by 2015, to mark the 40th anniversary of the founding of the Lao People's Democratic Republic.
The idea to develop a Lao satellite project is not new. The country established a joint-venture with Thai investors to launch a satellite several years ago, but the Thai investor's financial troubles led to its collapse. The government also inked a cooperation agreement with US investors but that failed too, for the same reason.
Once Laos has its own satellite, it will be easier to further develop its telecommunications industry, since it will not be dependent on subscribing to satellite services from foreign countries like Thailand and China.
vientiane times
