SupremeSAT launch delayed

Sri Lanka’s first privately owned satellite SupremeSAT 1 will be launched within the next few days from the Xi Chang launch centre in China. The original launch date was put off due to bad weather. It was rescheduled to be launched within five days.

A last minute technical issue coupled with the prevalent bad weather conditions at the launch centre compelled us to postpone the launch by a maximum of five days, SupremeSAT Chairman R M Manivanan said in a media release.

The Supreme Group invested $ 100 m to take Sri Lanka into the space industry with an additional $ 20 m for a satellite training and a transmitting station in Kandy.

The company plans to invest a further $ 60 m to develop the project further.

The launch of the satellite will create a new industry in Sri Lanka generating foreign exchange and high technology employment enabling regional business opportunities.

The project is a joint venture between SupremeSAT and the Chinese state owned China Great Wall Industry Corporation.

- SJ