Israeli Government Snubs Spacecom, to Buy Satellite from IAI
Amos 6 in final testing. Photo Credit: Spacecom
Spacecom Satellite Communications notified the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange on Monday that it had learned from a government source that the State of Israel intends to buy a new communications satellite from Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI). The new satellite will be positioned at 4 degrees west, in accordance with the state’s needs.
This represents a serious blow to Spacecom, after it announced a month ago that it would buy its planned Amos 8 satellite from U.S. company SSL, and not from IAI. A battle ensued between Spacecom and IAI over the future of satellite communications in Israel. IAI expressed the fear that Spacecom’s decision to buy a satellite from a foreign company would adversely affect the future of its communications satellites business.