ECHOSTAR & GVT BRAZIL JV
On September 30, EchoStar Corp. (EchoStar) and Vivendi SA (Vivendi) announced that EchoStar Technologies LLC and Vivendi's Brazilian phone and Internet unit, GVT, have commenced negotiations for the establishment of a joint venture that will offer pay TV services in Brazil. To be headquartered in Brazil and managed by GVT, the joint venture will seek to tap opportunities in the burgeoning Brazilian pay TV market, which stands to experience further growth in light of the upcoming World Cup and Olympic Games to be hosted by Brazil. EchoStar and GVT hope that the combination of GVT's strong market position and state-of-the-art IP network and EchoStar's Brazilian regulatory authorizations and expertise in satellite and video technology will help them develop the joint venture into a leader in the Brazilian market.
SES €500M FIVE-YEAR EURO BOND
On October 16, SES S.A. (SES) successfully placed a €500m 5-year Euro bond, issued by SES Global Americas Holdings GP and guaranteed by SES, carrying a coupon of 1.875%, the lowest coupon in SES history. The issuance follows SES's inaugural U.S. offering, a $1b Rule 144A dual-tranche offering in March of this year. SES intends to use the net proceeds from the Euro bond to refinance existing debt. BNP, Crédit Agricole, Commerzbank, Tokyo-Mitsubishi and Mizuho served as book runners and BCEE served as co-manager for the issuance.
ALLIANT $300M SENIOR NOTES
On October 23, Alliant Techsystems Inc. (ATK) announced that it priced a private offering of $300m aggregate principal amount of senior notes due 2021. The notes will carry an interest rate of 5.25% per annum and will be issued at a price equal to 100% of their principal amount. ATK plans to use the net proceeds from the notes offering to fund its previously announced acquisition of Bushnell Group Holdings, Inc. (Bushnell) from MidOcean Partners for approximately $1b. ATK's acquisition of Bushnell is expected to close in the third quarter of fiscal year 2014 ending March 30, 2014, subject to regulatory approvals and closing conditions. ATK plans to use any additional net proceeds from the notes offering for general corporate purposes.
ILS LAUNCHES SIRIUS FM-6
On October 26, International Launch Services Inc. successfully launched the Sirius FM-6 satellite for Sirius XM Radio Inc. on an ILS Proton launch vehicle. Manufactured by Space Systems/Loral, LLC, Sirius FM-6 is equipped with an X-band uplink transponder and an Sband downlink transponder and will provide digital audio radio service from the 116.15°W orbital location.
OCTOBER SATELLITE ORDERS
October 8 – Inmarsat plc announced that it exercised an option under its existing contract with Boeing Satellite Systems International to purchase a fourth Inmarsat-5 satellite at an estimated total cost of between $220m and $250m. The satellite will serve initially as a launch spare for the first three Inmarsat-5 satellites, affording Inmarsat back-up necessary to ensure a more rapid global service deployment of its Global Xpress offering and to attract additional customer commitments. Inmarsat stated that the new satellite, if not needed to replace one of the first three Inmarsat-5 satellites, will be used to increase capacity and enhance network coverage for Global Xpress. October 24 – EADS Astrium announced that it was selected by DIRECTV, LLC (DIRECTV) to manufacture a satellite based on the Eurostar E3000 platform. Expected to be launched in 2016, the satellite will be equipped with up to 60 Ku-band transponders, as well as 20 spot beams for regional programming, and will be operated by DIRECTV subsidiary Sky Brasil Serviços Ltda. to provide broadcasting services to customers throughout Brazil. In addition to ensuring the continuity of existing services, the satellite will also provide new services, such as HDTV.
SES, OHB & ESA ELECTRA INITIATIVE
On October 15, SES S.A. (SES) and the European Space Agency (ESA) announced a public-private partnership for the development of ELECTRA, an innovative, small and medium-sized, fully electric satellite platform manufactured in Europe. Valued at approximately $16m, the oneyear contract between SES and the ESA covers the design phase of the project and is expected to be followed by full development of ELECTRA with the support of OHB System AG, as subcontractor to SES. The first ELECTRA flight could occur as early as 2018 as an SES mission.
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