Russian Satellite Communications Company and Eutelsat Communications Announce the Signature of a Memorandum of Understanding for a New Satellite to Drive Expansion at 36 Degrees East

Russian Satellite Communications Company and Eutelsat Communications Announce the Signature of a Memorandum of Understanding for a New Satellite to Drive Expansion at 36 Degrees East

MOSCOW and PARIS, May 10, 2011/PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- The Russian Satellite Communications Company (RSCC), Russia's state
satellite operator, and Eutelsat Communications (Euronext Paris: ETL) today
announced the signature of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that will
expand their longstanding strategic partnership in satellite communications.

According to the MOU, a new satellite will be launched in 2015 to 36
degrees East, the most popular neighbourhood for satellite TV in Russia. The
new spacecraft will be designed to optimise capacity at a multi-satellite
position, delivering new resources to both RSCC and Eutelsat for consumer
broadcasting and multimedia services within a footprint of European Russia to
the Urals. It will also carry a payload with a footprint over sub-Saharan
Africa to provide long-term continuity for services currently supplied at
36 degrees East by W4, and capacity for further expansion. Financing of the
new satellite will be ensured by Eutelsat, with the launch provided within
the framework of the current Russian Federal Space Programme for 2006-2015.
In-orbit operations will be managed by RSCC from its Dubna satellite centre.

The MOU was signed today in Moscow at the official opening of the SVIAZ
Expocom 2011 conference and exhibition, by Yuri Prokhorov, Director General
of RSCC, and Michel de Rosen, CEO of Eutelsat Communications, in the presence
of Igor Shchegolev, Minister for Communications and Mass Media of the Russian
Federation.

Yuri Prokhorov, Director General of RSCC, declared: "With the
commissioning and the launch of a new satellite, the Russian Federation will
have additional capabilities to expand its direct broadcasting networks in
the European part of the country and have the necessary in-orbit resources to
support further growth of the satellite business. We look forward to further
consolidating our strategic partnership with Europe's leading satellite
operator."

Michel de Rosen, Eutelsat CEO added: "We are delighted to benefit from
the expertise of RSCC as a shareholder in Eutelsat over almost 20 years, and
to be their chosen partner in a satellite venture which will expand our
satellite capacity and secure long-term visibility at the 36 degrees East
position. We share the common objective to continue to work together for the
benefit of our customers and to deliver satellite resources that support the
expansion of a vibrant digital economy for the Russian Federation."

The longstanding collaboration between the two companies goes back to
1994 when RSCC, representing the Russian Federation, joined the EUTELSAT
intergovernmental organization in order to develop its international
satellite resources. The opening of services at 36 degrees East began in 1997
with the positioning by Eutelsat of a first satellite to initiate digital TV
broadcasting in Russia. This milestone was followed in 2000 by the launches
of Eutelsat's W4 and SESAT 1 satellites, the latter marking the beginning of
an industrial collaboration between French and Russian satellite
manufacturing capabilities that was followed by the Express AM series of
satellites. The most recent milestone at 36 degrees East was the entry into
service in January 2010 of Eutelsat's powerful, high-capacity W7 satellite
that replaced SESAT 1, and has more than doubled available resources.

About the Russian Satellite Communications Company

Russian Satellite Communications Company is the Russian national
satellite communications operator, whose satellites provide global coverage.
The company was formed in 1967 and is one of the ten largest satellite
operators worldwide in terms of the size of its orbiting frequency resources.
RSCC owns Russia's largest satellite constellation. Areas served by RSCC
satellites, which are in orbit at points from 14 degrees W to 140 degrees E,
cover all of Russia, the CIS countries, Europe, the Near East, Africa, the
Asia-Pacific Region, North and South America, and Australia.

As Russia's national satellite communications operator, RSCC handles
important national tasks, supporting mobile presidential and government
communications, transmitting federal TV and radio signals throughout Russia
and most of the world. The company actively participates in implementing
priority national projects. RSCC closely interacts with the Russian state
authorities in the development of information and telecommunications systems
for communications and broadcasting. RSCC provides a full range of
communications and broadcasting services using its own terrestrial equipment
and satellite constellation, including modern Express-AM, Express-MD,
Express-A, and Bonum-1 satellites and some French W4 satellite capacity. The
company's satellites provide extensive capabilities to establish TV and radio
broadcasting including DTH, IPTV, and MPEG-4 services, broadband Internet
access, data transmission, videoconferencing, and deployment of VSAT networks
and departmental and corporative communications networks worldwide. The
company has a modern terrestrial satellite control system, which it uses to
control not only its own satellites, but those of Eutelsat, Intelsat, and
others as well.

The company includes five satellite communications centers (SCC): Dubna,
Bear Lakes, Skolkovo, Zheleznogorsk, Khabarovsk and the Shabolovka Technical
Center in Moscow and its own high-speed optical-fiber digital network.
http://www.rscc.ru

About Eutelsat Communications

Eutelsat Communications (Euronext Paris: ETL, ISIN code: FR0010221234) is
the holding company of Eutelsat S.A.. With capacity commercialised on 27
satellites that provide coverage over the entire European continent, as well
as the Middle East, Africa, India and significant parts of Asia and the
Americas, Eutelsat is one of the world's three leading satellite operators in
terms of revenues. At 31 December 2010, Eutelsat's satellites were
broadcasting more than 3,700 television channels to over 200 million cable
and satellite homes in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. The Group's
satellites also serve a wide range of fixed and mobile telecommunications
services, TV contribution markets, corporate networks, and broadband markets
for Internet Service Providers and for transport, maritime and in-flight
markets. Eutelsat's broadband subsidiary, Skylogic, markets and operates
access to high speed Internet services through teleports in France and Italy
that serve enterprises, local communities, government agencies and aid
organisations in Europe, Africa, Asia and the Americas. Headquartered in
Paris, Eutelsat and its subsidiaries employ 683 commercial, technical and
operational employees from 28 countries.

http://www.eutelsat.com

Source: Eutelsat Communications & RSCC

RSCC: e-mail: pr@rscc.ru. For further information: Press: Vanessa O'Connor, Tel. : + 33-1-53-98-37-91, voconnor@eutelsat.fr; Frederique Gautier Tel. : +33-1-53-98-37-91, fgautier@eutelsat.fr; Analysts and Investors: Lisa Finas, Tel. : +33-1-53-98-35-30, investors@eutelsat-communications.com

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