|
|
 advertisement
|
Government to invest N57.3b in NIGCOMSAT-1
TO ensure the proper operation of the proposed Nigerian Communication Satellite (NIGCOMSAT-1), the Federal Government will invest about $450 million in the project.
Already, the project, which is due for launch next December, has started attracting core investors from across Africa.
Director General of the National Space Research and Development Agency (NASRDA), Prof. Robert Boroffice, said in Abuja yesterday that the Federal Government hoped to use the project to unite many African countries. He reiterated government's plan to sell 50 per cent of the transponders before the satellite's launch.
The hint is coming just as the Federal Government and a Sudanese firm signed a Memorandum of Understanding on the communications satellite. The $250 million pact will entail Elrased Electronic Trading and Investment Limited of Sudan investing about $250 million in the Nigerian Communication Satellite.
The investment from the Sudanese firm is in two parts: $200 million of the sum will take care of the company's equity participation in the project, thereby making the firm a core investor.
The remaining $50 million will be used by the Sudanese company to purchase transponders from the communication satellite.
Signing the agreement on behalf of the Federal Government, Boroffice explained that the $50 million investment would cover the purchase of 10 transponders for a period covering between five and six years.
Chairman of Elrased Electronic Trading and Investment Company Limited, Maj-Gen. Khalil Mohd Al Sadiq signed on behalf of his company. The company is said to represent many other companies in Sudan.
Commenting on the pact, Sadiq, who spoke through an interpreter, noted that the investment was the company's "little way" of supporting the Federal Government's call for more Direct Foreign Investment in Nigeria.
NIGCOMSAT-1 is expected to provide job for over 150,000 engineers, technicians and telecoms service providers.
|
advertisement