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Tag: New Skies Satellites

  • SES Global to buy NSS for $760 mn

    SES Global to buy NSS for $760 mn

    MUMBAI: This piece of news signals further consolidation happening in the satellite industry. The world’s biggest satellite operator SES Global will buy New Skies Satellites (NSS) for $760 million in cash.

    The integration of New Skies satellite assets will notably extend SES presence in India, the Middle East and Africa as well as in Latin America, allowing SES better to meet its customer requirements for global service offerings. In addition, NSS customers will benefit from the expansion capacity, redundancy and broad service offerings provided by the larger SES fleet and organisation.

    Under the terms of the deal, SES will pay $22.52 per share, or $760 million, for New Skies. SES Global will also refinance the company’s estimated $400 million in debt, bringing the deal’s enterprise value to about $1.2 billion. SES plans to use New Skies’ fleet of five satellites, with a sixth scheduled for launch next year, to complement SES’s existing fleet, focussing on service in India, the Middle East, Africa and Latin America.

    The companies expect the deal to close in approximately six months. This is the second major acquisition that the satellite industry has seen in recent times. A few months ago, Intelsat had announced a deal to acquire Panamsat. This deal is also expected to close next year which will make it the largest player in the market.

    NSS claims to be the worlds fifth largest satellite operator based on transponder capacity, with five spacecraft positioned at strategic orbital locations around the globe and an additional satellite due for launch in 2006. For the fiscal ended 30 September 30, 2005, NSS generated revenues of $ 232.9 million. With its complementary satellite fleet, NSS says that it offers a compelling strategic fit to SES Global, whose Astra and Americom spacecraft are optimised to provide satellite services over Europe and North America.

    NSS existing business mix also enhances SES video-centric core business by strengthening its video, data and government segments. In the government services market, NSS position as a satellite capacity provider to a range of government customers is a strong complement to the comprehensive capabilities of SES Americom Government Services in this important and fast-growing market. The transaction will allow SES to reduce its reliance on third-party capacity for government services in certain regions of the world and, moreover, allow for synergies with respect to operating expenses across the business more broadly.

    SES Global president and CEO Romain Bausch, says, New Skies is poised to become SES third satellite infrastructure pillar, alongside Astra in Europe and Americom in North America and complementing SES existing participations in Asia and Latin America. New Skies fleet considerably strengthens our ability to provide satellite infrastructure and services in geographic regions and business segments with high growth rates. Furthermore, this acquisition provides SES with an existing cable neighborhood in Latin America and will facilitate the further development of SES government services.”

    ” With its state-of-the-art satellite fleet, blue chip customer base, strong growth profile, and experienced management team and highly skilled employees, we are pleased to welcome New Skies to SES. This acquisition is accretive to earnings and increases our leverage to targeted levels, while adding EBITDA. It therefore immediately increases shareholder value.

    NSS CEO Dan Goldberg said, We are delighted to be entering into this agreement with SES, an agreement that serves the best interests of our shareholders, customers, employees and suppliers. As the leader in the commercial satellite sector, SES has a global satellite fleet and other financial and strategic resources that can be leveraged for the benefit of New Skies diverse and growing customer base.

    “This agreement also provides significant value for our shareholders, representing a 10 per cent premium to the closing price on August 18, 2005 (which is the last closing price prior to market speculation about the sale of the Company), a 10 per cent premium to the volume weighted average share price since the Companys IPO, and a 36 per cent premium to the IPO listing price just seven months ago. The board of directors of New Skies has unanimously approved the transaction and recommends that the companys shareholders approve it.
     

  • Intelsat likely to buy New Skies Satellites

    MUMBAI: Satellite service provider Intelsat is believed to be looking at acquiring one of its rivals New Skies Satellites (NSS).
     
     

    NSS is said to be worth around $1.3 billion. Media reports indicate that if the deal goes through it could result in fresh consolidation in the satellite industry.
     
     

    The proposed new entity would have 33 spacecraft in orbit, including five relatively young New Skies Satellites designed to serve emerging international markets for video, Internet and data. That compares with 35 that the largest satellite firm SES Global operates. New Skies was originally a part of Intelsat.

    Other satellite service providers like Panamsat, Eutelsat and SES Global may also consider buying NSS, media reports state. The aim could be to raise the price if not anything else and make it difficult for the other bidders.

    NSS states that it is one of only four fixed satellite communications companies with global satellite coverage, offering data, video, Internet and voice communications services to a range of telecommunications carriers, broadcasters, large corporations, Internet service providers and government entities around the world. NSS has five satellites in orbit, one spacecraft under construction (NSS-8) and ground facilities around the world.

  • Successful NSS launch on heels of Ariane 5 failure

    Successful NSS launch on heels of Ariane 5 failure

    Kourou : Arianespace successfully orbited the NSS-6 satellite for New Skies Satellites N.V. from Kourou, French Guiana on 17 December 17 at 8:04 p.m. local time.
    Flight 156, carried out by an Ariane 44L – the Ariane 4 launcher version equipped with four liquid-propellant strap-on boosters, was the 73rd consecutive success for Ariane 4. However, the same cannot be said of the Ariane 5 variants as last week’s loss of the Ariane 5 is a major blow not only to Arianespace but the commercial launch industry, space insurance industry, and even scientists.

    The failure of the new variant of Europe’s Ariane 5 on 11 December was the third failure in 14 launches for the Ariane 5 dating back to 1996; a fourth launch is also considered a partial failure since it placed a test payload into an improper orbit.

    Flight 157 had failed roughly three minutes into its inaugural launch after appearing to divert from its intended trajectory. This mission was also the first instance of an Ariane 5 equipped with a cryogenic upper stage, which apparently never got the chance to function, say reports.

    The new upper stage was designed to boost the Ariane 5’s payload capacity, enabling it to launch two satellites with a combined weight of nearly 10,000 kilograms into geostationary transfer orbit.

    The maiden flight was carrying the Hot Bird 7 direct-broadcast television satellite owned by Eutelsat S.A. of Paris and the French government’s Stentor telecommunications research satellite, which was designed to test new technologies.

    The failure also threw into doubt the scheduled 12 January 2003 launch of the European Space Agency’s Rosetta comet-chaser spacecraft aboard an Ariane 5 rocket. Rosetta has a 10-day launch window. If that window is missed, the next opportunity to launch the mission is in 170 years.

    The launch of a new version of Europe’s Ariane 5 booster failed because of an unexplained problem three minutes after launch, destroying the rocket and its payload of two satellites, according to reports.

    The Ariane 5 ESC-A lifted off on schedule at 5:21 pm EST (10:21 pm GMT) and the flight appeared to be proceeding smoothly, but several minutes after launch controllers noticed the vehicle was losing speed and altitude.

    Arianespace CEO Jean-Yves Le Gall later said that the vehicle suffered an “anomaly” three minutes after liftoff which led to the failure. At that stage of flight the rocket’s two solid-propellant strap-on boosters have already separated, but the first-stage engine continues to fire.

    However, on 16 December, Arianespace has decided — in cooperation with the European Space Agency and French CNES space agency — to create an inquiry board to submit a report by 6 January 2003.

    Meanwhile, the success of the Ariane 4 continues with the 17 December Flight 156 being the 73rd consecutive success in the series.

    In its press release, Arianespace stated that the flawless orbital injection of NSS-6 fully demonstrated Arianespace’s capability to ensure launch service continuity for its customers.

    Flight 156 marked the second time that New Skies Satellites has relied on Arianespace for commercial launch services since the satellite company’s founding in 1998.

    New Skies Satellites is one of four fixed satellite operators in the world that offers true global satellite coverage, and its NSS-7 satellite was orbited by Arianespace on 17 April 17 2002 (Flight 150).

    Built by Lockheed Martin Commercial Space Systems, NSS-6 is capable of connecting more than 60% of the world’s population, especially in the broadcasting and business services sectors.

    Weighing about 4,575 kg. at launch, it will be positioned at 95 degrees East to provide coverage of Asia, Australia, India, the Middle East and Southern Africa. NSS-6 features onboard switching, which means it can assign up to 15 transponders to each region. This high degree of coverage flexibility will enable New Skies to adapt to changing market requirements.

    Flight 156 was carried out by an Ariane 44L – the Ariane 4 launcher version equipped with four liquid-propellant strap-on boosters – from Europe’s Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana.

    Provisional parameters at third-stage injection were:
    Perigee: 199.4 km for a target of 199.7 km. (±3 km.)
    Apogee: 35,904 km for a target of 35,955 km. (±150 km.)
    Inclination: 6.99 degrees for a target of 6.99 degrees (±0.06 deg.)

  • Arianespace’s 2nd NSS flight lifts off tomorrow

    Arianespace’s 2nd NSS flight lifts off tomorrow

    Kourou: Undaunted by the failure of flight 157, Araianespace has announced that it has secured the go-ahead for the launch of its second flight for New Skies Satellites. This followed the launch readiness review held at the Spaceport in French Guiana.

    The review cleared Flight 156’s Ariane 4 for the 17 December liftoff, and confirmed the readiness of its NSS-6 telecom satellite payload. Launch infrastructure at the Spaceport was declared ready for the mission, as were the downrange tracking stations.

    This flight will be the second-to-last mission for the Ariane 4 launcher family. It is the 115th launch of an Ariane 4, and the 39th in the 44L version – which is equipped with four large liquid strap-on boosters for augmented thrust at liftoff and initial ascent.

    The NSS-6 satellite was built by Lockheed Martin and carries a payload with high-performance Ku-band beams. To be positioned at 95 deg. East, the platform will reach markets from the Mediterranean Sea to Japan – covering Asia, Australia, Southern Africa and the Middle East.

    Arianespace’s previous launch for the Netherlands-based New Skies Satellites was last April, when Flight 150 placed the NSS-7 satellite into a highly accurate geostationary transfer orbit.

  • New Skies posts revenues of $ 51.8 million during Q1 2002

    New Skies posts revenues of $ 51.8 million during Q1 2002

    Dutch comunication company New Skies Satellites has reported that revenues grew to $51.8 million, an increase of $0.6 million over the same period in 2001, for the quarter ended March 31, 2002.

    The company, which launched the satellite NSS 7 on 16 April, also signed contracts with New Zealand broadcaster TVNZ for the delivery of television news and sports events around the world; with the International Broadcasting Bureau/Voice of America for digital video links between the US and locations in the Caribbean and with a major Indian ISP data access for internet services during this quarter. New Skies has, during the first quarter, tied up with Arab Digital Distribution for their customer Star TV for video services from Hong Kong to Italy; and with major European telecommunication companies, Telenor and CPR Marconi, for voice and data services over NSS3, a release says.

    New Skies Q1 EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) are $ 28.6 million, while net income is put at $ 6.4 million. The EBITDA for the same quarter grew by $ 0.9 million or 3 per cent. The net income for the first quarter of 2002 decreased by $ 1.6 million and the diluted earnings per share for the same period reduced by $ 0.01, compared with the same period in 2001. The decrease in the current quarter primarily relates to the lower interest income, according to the release.