Neel Mehta 
Thales Alenia Space, the space systems division of Thales Group, has won a contract to build a telecommunications satellite for Russian operator Gazprom Space Systems.
Construction of the Yamal-601 could take 26 months and the satellite will be launched by the International Launch Service aboard a Proton rocket, Thales announced Wednesday.
Under the contract, Thales will be responsible for the satellite and associated ground segment’s design, production, testing and turnkey delivery functions.
Yamal-601 is designed to carry 18 C-band transponders, 19 Ku-band transponders and 26 Ka-band transponders for offering extended fixed communications, broadcast and Internet access services in Europe, Middle East, North Africa, South Asia and Southeast Asia.
Thales will also build the satellite to have 15 kilowatts of payload power and a design life of more than 15 years.
