EADS Astrium has been awarded a contract to build communication satellite operator Telesat's Nimiq 4 communications satellite, set to be launched in 2008.
International Launch Services (ILS) will launch the satellite aboard a Proton Breeze-M booster from Baikonur cosmodrome, Kazakhstan in 2008. The 4.8t Nimiq 4 is an E3000 Eurostar spacecraft bus with a solar array span of 39m (128ft8in).
The Nimiq 4 replaces the Nimiq 2, which suffered a partial failure in 2003. Telesat recovered half of the loss of the Nimiq 2 from insurance and is using those funds to lease the DirecTV 5 satellite until Nimiq 4's launch.
The ILS launch will be the fifth to be awarded to the company by Telesat, following Anik F1R, launched in 2005, Anik F3, scheduled for a 2006 launch and Nimiq 1 and 2, launched in 1999 and 2002 respectively.
Source: Flight International