Thales Alenia Space has announced that it has signed a contract with the Korean satellite service operator KT Sat, subsidiary of KT Corporation, to build two telecommunications satellites, Koreasat-7 and Koreasat-5A, winning the contract against an international field of competitors. The two satellites will provide Internet access, multimedia, broadcasting and fixed communications services.

As program prime contractor, Thales Alenia Space is in charge of the design, production, testing and On Ground Delivery (OGD) of the satellites. It will also take charge of the launch campaigns, the launch and early operations phase (LEOP) and in-orbit tests (IOT).

Built on the Upgraded Spacebus 4000B2 platform from Thales Alenia Space, Koreasat-7 will be fitted with Ku-band transponders and Ka-band transponders. Koreasat-5A will carry Ku-band transponders.

Koreasat-7's coverage zone encompasses Korea, the Philippines, Indonesia and India, while Koreasat-5A will cover Korea, Japan, Indochina and the Middle East. Each satellite will weigh about 3,500 kg at launch and will offer payload power of about 7 kW. Koreasat-7 will be positioned at 116 East and Koreasat-5A at 113 East.

"I would like to express my warm thanks to KT Sat for choosing us to build these two new telecommunications satellites," said Jean-Loic Galle, President and CEO of Thales Alenia Space.

"KT Sat is a long-standing customer, for whom we already built the Koreasat-5 and Koreasat-6 satellites. Through this new contract, we are delighted to support the development of large-scale space programs in South Korea, and in Asia in general."