Satellite: BTRC borrows €157m from HSBC
In line with the telecom regulator’s proposal to the government, Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission has borrowed 157.5 million euros from HSBC for the country's first space satellite Bangabandhu-1.
BTRC Chairman Shahjahan Mahmood and HSBC Deputy CEO Md Mahbub-ur Rahman signed the loan agreement this afternoon at BRTC office in Dhaka.
The interest rate for the loan will be Libor plus 1.51 percent in estimated 12 years. The London interbank offered rate is considered to be one of the most important interest rates in finance.
The money will be spent on the spacecraft's design and installation with insurance coverage, according to senior BTRC officials.
The BTRC has already paid about 71 million euros in three instalments to Thales Alenia Space, a French aerospace manufacturer, by borrowing money from a local bank. The money will be adjusted after getting the loan from HSBC.
The satellite project's estimated cost is Tk 2,967 crore, of which Tk 1,314 crore will come from the Bangladesh side. Officials said the cost would come down ultimately as the BTRC has received offers lower than the price estimated two years ago.
Currently, Bangladesh meets its need for satellite connectivity by renting bandwidth from operators, which costs the country almost $14 million a year. The satellite will save the money.
The project will reach break-even in seven years after the launch and allow the regulator to sell excess capacity to other nations.
The Bangabandhu-1 satellite is expected to provide services to all South Asian countries as well as Indonesia, the Philippines, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan if its frequency is properly coordinated.
The government has further plans to launch two more satellites.
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