A U.S. telecommunications satellite has been delivered to the Baikonur space center in Kazakhstan ahead of a December 29 launch, Russia's Khrunichev center said on Friday.

DirecTV satellite operator has a contract with Russian-U.S. joint venture International Launch Services (ILS) to launch the DirecTV-12 on board a Proton-M carrier rocket to expand its existing satellite grouping.

"AN-124 Ruslan heavy transport plane with the [DirecTV-12] satellite and auxiliary launch equipment landed on Friday at the Baikonur space center," the Khrunichev Space and Research Center said in a statement.

The launch is expected to be the ninth Proton launch in 2009 and the 350th overall for the long-serving Russian carrier rocket.

The Boeing-made DirecTV-12 satellite, weighing around 6 metric tons, will become part of DirecTV satellite grouping and provide high-definition TV, Internet and communications services to subscribers in the United States.

The Khrunichev center has overseen 12 successful launches of its carrier rockets since the start of 2009.