Shin Sat's board nods in favour of $390m loan
Business Day (Thailand) 10/09/02
(c) 2002 Business Day (Thailand)
SHIN Satellite, one of Asia's leading satellite transponder providers, said yesterday that its board had approved a
US$390.2 million syndicated loan to finance the company's latest satellite project. Shin Satellite or Sattel, said that the
loans would be used to fund its new satellite project, iPSTAR, which is expected to be launched by the middle of next
year. The company said the board's approval was Shin Satellite's green light to go ahead and re-negotiate the terms and
conditions for the project. The re-negotiations are expected to be completed within the next two weeks. "We are still in
negotiations and expect a deal to be signed within the next two weeks," Dumrong Kasemset, a director at Sattel, told
Business Day.
The $390 million loan will be divided into three parts, with the first part comprising $184.5 million from the Export-Import
Bank of United States. The second involving $80.7 million from France's Compagine Francaise d'Assurance pour le
Commerce Exterieur. These two loans are expected to be paid back in eight years.
The remaining $125 million will come from commercial syndicated lenders, Sattel said in a statement to the Stock
Exchange of Thailand (SET).
As part of the company's plans to continue to expand its iPSTAR operations, the board has also approved a $25 million
purchase plan for the gateway systems.
Sattel is 51 percent owned by Shin Corp, Thailand's largest telecom conglomerate. It is the sole satellite operator in
Thailand, with three satellites covering Asia, Australia, Middle East and Europe.
Sattel has in said in the past that it expects iPSTAR to be the key driver for revenues in the future. It has also said
previously that the company would see its revenues rise by as much as four times once the satellite is successfully
launched. |
