PARIS (Reuters) - Western Europe's Arianespace satellite launch company said on Wednesday it had signed contracts to launch two satellites, bringing its total launch backlog to 44 satellites.
"Hughes Space & Communications and Societe Europeene des Satellites (SES) - will once again use Arianespace for the launch of a direct TV broadcast satellite,'' Paris-based Arianespace said in a statement.
"Astra 2D will be launched during the third quarter of 2000 under the terms of an agreement with Hughes Space & Communications, which is building the satellite for SES of Luxembourg,'' it said.
Financial terms were not disclosed. Specialists estimated the launch cost of the Hughes 376 series satellite at over $60 million.
Late on Tuesday Arianespace announced a contract for the launch of the NSS-7 satellite for New Skies Satellites of the Netherlands. New Skies is a new global satellite operator created from the privatization of INTELSAT.
NSS-7 is scheduled for launch towards the end of 2001 and will be built by Lockheed Martin in Sunnyvale, California.
Financial terms of the launch were not disclosed but are estimated to approach $100 million for the 4.6 ton satellite.
Both satellites will be launched aboard Ariane rockets from the European Space Agency launch center in Kourou, French Guiana on the northeast coast of South America.
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