SOFIA (Bulgaria), September 8, 2014 – Space Systems/Loral (SSL), the world's leading provider of commercial satellites, was selected to provide the first Bulgarian geostationary communications satellite for Bulgaria Sat.
The appointment of a communications satellite provider is one of the stages of a major project for launching BulgariaSat-1, a geostationary communications satellite, utilizing the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launch in 2016. The operation is backed by export credit financing granted by the Export-Import Bank of the United States.
The satellite, which will provide Direct-to-Home (DTH) television service in the Balkan region, is the first dedicated Bulgarian geostationary communications satellite and places Bulgaria Sat among the region's leading technological and advanced companies.
BulgariaSat-1 is based on the space-proven SSL 1300 satellite platform, which provides flexibility for a broad range of applications and technological advances. It is designed to deliver service for at least 15 years.
"My partners, my team, and I are very pleased to announce this news, as this is the first long-term telecommunications project of such scale to be implemented in Bulgaria. We would like to thank our customers for their trust - what we do is for them and without them this technology breakthrough would not have been possible."
"SSL has a long history of working with both large established satellite operators and newer ventures to provide highly reliable satellites for today's advanced services," said John Celli, president of SSL. "It has been a pleasure to help Bulgaria Sat reach this milestone of ordering its first satellite, which will help expand connectivity in the region, bringing the latest and up-to-date information and entertainment."
About Bulgaria Sat
Bulgaria Sat is a Bulgarian company and operator of BulgariaSat-1, the first Bulgarian geostationary telecommunications satellite, which will be positioned at Bulgaria's national geostationary orbital slot.
For more information, please visit: www.bulgariasat.com
About SSL
SSL has a long history of delivering reliable satellites and spacecraft systems for commercial and government customers worldwide. As the world's leading provider of commercial satellites, the company works closely with satellite operators to provide spacecraft for a broad range of services, including television and radio distribution, digital audio radio, broadband Internet, and mobile communications. Billions of people around the world depend on SSL satellites every day.
For more information, please visit www.sslmda.com.