Chinese engineers assembling the satellite in China:

Sri Lanka to unveil first communication satellite on Thursday

Shirajiv SIRIMANE

Sri Lanka would move to a new era on Thursday when the country’s first Communication satellite would be orbited from China. In a few hours, it would be positioned over Sri Lanka. The Supreme Group Sri Lanka along with China Great Wall Industry Corporation has funded and developed this satellite which would be the third of its kind in the South Asian Region.

With this launch, Sri Lanka recovering after a 30 year conflict would be opening its doors to a new industry which some of the other Asian countries have not even embarked on.

“This historic project would open opportunities for new business from the region and it is expected that it would bring in foreign exchange tot the value of around US 300 million in the next few years,” said Supreme Group Chairman R M Manivannan.

He said while creating new employment opportunities, it would also for the first time allow Sri Lankans to venture in to the Space industry. He said several countries in the region have already inquired about obtaining its services, mainly for the telecommunication related services. Sri Lanka is the third country in the region after India and Pakistan n to own a satellite while Supreme Group Sri Lanka is the 15th private company in the world to own a communication satellite. The Sr Lankan flag would also be displayed in this satellite.