The Indonesian government has appointed a consortium of local companies to operate a broadband telecommunication satellite that will provide comprehensive internet access across the vast archipelago.
Communication and Information Technology Minister Johnny G. Plate said on Wednesday 12 February 2020 that the financial agreement would be concluded next month to allow the consortium to begin work immediately. The project to build and launch the Satelit Republik Indonesia (SATRIA) will be led by the Pasifik Satelit Nusantara (PSN) consortium, comprised of Pintar Nusantara Sejahtera, Pasifik Satelitusantara, Dian Semesta Sentosa and Nusantara Satelit Sejahtera.
“We expect SATRIA to go to the launch pad in the fourth quarter of 2022,” Plate said during a government hearing for the commission which oversees defence and foreign affairs. He added that the project’s financing will involve several countries.
The consortium has appointed France-based Thales Alenia Space to design and manufacture the satellite. According to Thales’ website, SATRIA will be a Very High Throughput (VHTS) satellite with a design based on Thales’ Spacebus NEO full electric platform and fitted with a fifth-generation digital processor (5G).
Thales will also build the main and backup satellite control centers, telecommand and telemetry stations, and ground mission segment. In addition, Thales will develop a training program for PSN engineers, some of whom will join the project team in Cannes and Toulouse during the built.
SATRIA will launch aboard a Falcon 9 rocket supplied by SpaceX, which will bring it into its orbit at 146°E for a 15-year lifetime.
Its data-transfer rate will be more than 150 gigabytes per second and will be used to expand internet access to Indonesia’s remote areas, connecting more than 150,000 data transmitters across the country to support a new digital system for education, health services, government administration and defense.
