- Sat
- Mar 2, 2013
- Updated: 4:17am
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AsiaSat seeks US$306m financing from US Export-Import Bank
Firm will use cash to build and launch two more satellites to meet increasing market demand
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Asia Satellite Telecommunications (AsiaSat) is looking to obtain a US$306 million long-term loan from the Export-Import Bank of the United States to finance its latest expansion programme.
The Hong Kong-based company, whose major shareholders are Citic Pacific and General Electric, plans to use the funds for the construction and launch of two new satellites, AsiaSat 6 and AsiaSat 8.
In a filing with the Hong Kong stock exchange yesterday, the regional satellite operator said the US bank would hold a board meeting early this month to consider AsiaSat's loan application and determine the relevant terms, such as the final amount, if approved.
The lender, known as the Ex-Im Bank, published a notice about AsiaSat's proposed loan in the US Federal Register on Thursday. The bank serves as an independent US government agency principally engaged in private export financing.
AsiaSat, which has been operating since 1990, said it had a strong cash flow and sizeable cash balance. The two new satellites were designed to provide a broader range of services to meet increasing market demand for satellite capacity across the group's markets, it said.
The company posted an 8 per cent rise in net profit to HK$395 million for the six months to June last year, up from HK$367 million in the previous year. Revenue climbed 37 per cent to HK$1.1 billion from HK$802 million. As at June 30, AsiaSat had total capital commitments of HK$2.74 billion and was debt-free.
AsiaSat has four satellites in orbit - AsiaSat 3S, AsiaSat 4, AsiaSat 5 and AsiaSat 7 - which provide access to information and communication channels for more than two-thirds of the world's population, stretching across the Asia-Pacific region to Russia.
AsiaSat 2 was retired last year, while two more satellites, AsiaSat 6 and AsiaSat 8, are under construction and slated to launch in the first half of next year.
In February last year, AsiaSat signed with the Californian-based company Space Exploration Technologies to launch AsiaSat 6 and 8 from Cape Canaveral in Florida.
