[Satellite TODAY 05-19-11] Asia Broadcast Satellite has secured $215 million in new funding, the company announced May 18. It has closed a $215 million five-year senior bank loan from a financial consortium comprising Goldman Sachs, HSBC, ING, Société Générale and Standard Chartered Bank.

     The financing will be used to fully fund the capital expenditure program for ABS-2, a high-powered satellite to be launched at 75 degrees East in 2013, as well as to provide funds for future strategic initiatives and acquisitions.

     ABS-2 will really be the centerpiece satellite for ABS satellite fleet going forward. Space Systems/Loral (SS/L) won the contract to build the satellite late last year. ABS-2 will have more than 12kW of payload power and up to a total of 87 active C-band, Ku-band and Ka-band transponders across 10 different beams bringing increased capacity and transmission power to the Middle East, Africa, Asia Pacific and CIS/Russia. The ABS-2 spacecraft is based on Space Systems/Loral’s 1300 satellite bus, with a separated mass in excess of 6,000 Kg at launch and is designed for 15 years of operational life.