Bangladesh’s first-ever satellite, the ‘Bangnabandhu-1’, will be launched on May 4 from Florida’s Cape Canaveral.
Space flight and technology company SpaceX has confirmed the launch date, Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission Chairman Shahjahan Mahmood said.
Telecoms and ICT Minister Mustafa Jabbar said in a Facebook post that the launching of Bangabandhu-1 has been scheduled.
SpaceX had previously planned to launch the satellite using Falcon-9 rockets on Dec 16 of last year, but the launch was postponed due to damage from Hurricane Irma.
After considering several dates between March 1 and April 30, SpaceX confirmed on Wednesday that the launching will take place on May 4.
It takes two months to prepare the pad for launching any satellite out of the SpaceX facility in the US state of Florida.
In 2015, Bangladesh cleared a project for its own satellite, followed by the signing of Tk 20 billion loan deal between the telecoms regulator and France-based Thales Group for buying the satellite systems.
The ‘Bangabandhu’ Satellite received the green light at a cabinet meeting in 2015. BTRC signed a loan deal worth Tk 20 billion with Thales Group to buy 'satellite systems.'
Last year, a Tk 4 billion loan deal with the HSBC was signed to send the satellite into orbit.
Expected to save the Tk 14 million Bangladesh now spends every year on renting foreign satellites, the Bangabandhu-1 will have 40 transponders.
Bangladesh will use 20 and rent out the rest.
The two ground stations for the satellite have been built at Gazipur’s Joydebpur and Rangamati’s Betbunia.