India's NSIL partners with Arianespace for global heavy satellite launch
NewSpace India Limited (NSIL), a space public sector undertaking (PSU) in India, has revealed the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Arianespace, a French satellite launch company. The collaboration is intended for mutual exploration of the growing global market for commercial satellite launch services. "Under the agreement, NSIL’s heavy lift LVM3 rocket and Arianespace’s Ariane-6 rocket will collaborate to meet the rising demand for launching heavy communication, earth observation and satellite constellation payloads", NSIL said.
NSIL is the commercial branch of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). This collaboration is particularly significant as Arianespace transitions away from its Ariane-5 launch vehicle, which has been instrumental in launching numerous global satellites, including those from India, and faces developmental delays with its Ariane-6 rocket. NSIL's analysis of the global launch services market for the next decade indicates significant growth potential, especially for rockets capable of transporting large payloads to geosynchronous transfer orbit (GTO) and low earth orbit (LEO).
However, this growth is contingent on India's ability to increase the production of the LVM-3 rocket and to involve the private sector in these efforts. This long-term mutual agreement aims to reinforce NSIL and Arianespace’s positions in the highly competitive commercial launch services industry in the 2020s. Both companies are preparing for an increase in launch activities to meet the demands of the burgeoning satellite market, which includes private communication networks, IoT services, and earth observation constellations.
Earlier this month, NSIL disclosed its intention to deploy a high-throughput satellite utilizing the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, owned by Elon Musk, later this year. NSIL is set to launch its second demand-responsive communications satellite, the GSAT-20 (now designated GSAT-N2), in the second quarter of 2024. The satellite, designed for high throughput in the Ka-band, is primarily focused on addressing the increasing broadband connectivity requirements in India.
Weighing 4,700 kg, the GSAT-N2 satellite, fully owned, operated, and financed by NSIL, is anticipated to deliver a capacity of up to 48 Gbps through 32 beams, encompassing the entire geographical expanse of India, including the Andaman, Nicobar, and Lakshadweep Islands. This upcoming launch signifies NSIL's inaugural utilization of a US launcher, deviating from its prior reliance on Arianespace for launches involving satellites exceeding the payload capacity of Indian launch vehicles.
