Mongolia hopes to launch a space satellite by 2015 with help from Japan, local media reported Wednesday.

A Japanese space exploration team visited Mongolia and organized a two-day workshop at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

The workshop was attended by representatives of both countries' governments and a number of Japanese companies, including Mitsubishi, Toshiba, Hitachi and Sumitomi.

Mongolia now uses the "Ipstar-5" broadband satellite for the delivery of TV and radio programs in rural areas. It uses the "Intelsat" satellite for telecommunications and mobile phone services, and receives digital data on weather and natural disasters from low-earth orbit satellites.

"The Mongolian government considers launching Mongolian satellites into space as an important project that can contribute significantly to the country's economic development," said Amgalanbat, an official from Mongolia's Information, Communication Technology and Post Authority.