Aniara, an Indian telecommunications company, has ordered two geostationary satellites from the Russian division of the international private aerospace company Dauria Aerospace, a partner of the Skolkovo Foundation. The agreement to design and manufacture small satellites was signed on July 15 at the 2014 Farnborough International Airshow held in the UK. This is the first time in history that a Russian company will build satellites for an Indian customer.
by Dmitry Mungalov
The small geostationary satellite platform is a breakthrough solution in geostationary satellite design, Dauria Aerospace was quoted saying in an interview to sk.ru. "The solution is inexpensive due to a clustered launch of two or more satellites on a single space launch vehicle, with the satellites utilizing electrically powered spacecraft propulsion to move from a geostationary transfer orbit to a geostationary orbit and to subsequently adjust the orbit and stabilize the satellite. The low cost and mass — less than one ton — are coupled with the platform's high productivity and the capacity to house up to sixteen transponders on a single vehicle."
Small satellites enable a more efficient use of a geostationary orbit's frequency resource. According to Raghu Das, Aniara's founder and CEO, no other solution offered on the market to this day can compare to Dauria Aerospace’s small satellites in terms of price and performance. "These characteristics are beneficial in many situations, such as when the market size or the available frequency resource does not permit the usage of traditional geostationary units. The partnership between Dauria Aerospace and Aniara will help us overcome these difficulties by using innovative solutions and cutting-edge technologies to design aerospace systems. Small satellites are the optimal solution to our problems in India linked to the shortage of satellite communications and broadcasting," stated Aniara's CEO. Small geostationary satellites will allow the communications provider to serve smaller markets where deployment of larger, more expensive geostationary systems would be unprofitable.
Dauria Aerospace and Aniara signing the agreement. Photo by Dauria Aerospace
Aniara was founded in 2001 to support and advise telecommunications and high-tech companies wishing to expand their operations and enter the markets in Asia, the Middle East and Africa. Most of the company’s resources are utilized in the aerospace sector, including communications and high-tech, satellite services and applications. The company has offices in the USA and India.
Dmitry Paison, Director for Research and Development at the Skolkovo Space and Telecommunications Cluster noted that India is part of the global telecommunications community and its companies can choose their suppliers of high-tech equipment and services. "Until now, spacecraft for state-owned companies has been procured from domestic suppliers. This will be the first time that a Russian company builds satellites for India. In this sense, the contract between Dauria and Aniara is an important step towards building a sound international reputation. Besides it stands to mention that the contract was signed now, despite the international context being what it is. So for Dauria it is a double win," stated Mr. Paison.
Dauria Aerospace’s partner, the international aerospace company Elecnor Deimos, headquartered in Madrid, will join the Indian company in fulfilling the agreement. Elecnor Deimos will be responsible for analysing the mission, flight dynamics and ground control.
Dauria Aerospace already has three satellites in orbit. The constellation of satellites, which will eventually comprise 11 units, is expected to be put into orbit by the end of next year. "The agreement signed between Dauria Aerospace and the Indian company is an important step towards developing Russia's new aerospace industry. We are eager to support such companies as Dauria Aerospace, both in the domestic and international markets. At the moment, Dauria Aerospace is building two small MKA-N remote space probes under a contract with Roscosmos," said Roscosmos Deputy Head Denis Lyskov, commenting on the deal.