Arianespace announced today that it will launch Horizons 3e, a satellite belonging to the Horizons joint venture owned by Intelsat (NYSE: I) and SKY Perfect JSAT.

Arianespace will orbit this Boeing-built payload in the launch period starting late 2018 on an Ariane 5 from the Guiana Space Center in French Guiana.

Horizons 3e will complete Intelsat’s global EpicNG network. The high-throughput satellite’s C-band and Ku-band transponders will provide 22 Gbps+ in growth capacity for aeronautical and maritime mobility applications spanning from Asia and the Pacific to North America. Horizons 3e is also expected to support further development of specialty networks for governments. The spacecraft will weigh 6,500 kg. at liftoff.

“Arianespace is extremely proud that Intelsat and SKY Perfect JSAT is entrusting us with yet another satellite. We are delighted to be working with these two great leaders, who have always placed their trust in Arianespace,” said Arianespace CEO Stéphane Israël. “It is a special honor to be able to announce this contract during our annual Japan Week activities in Tokyo.”

“Horizons 3e will complete the Intelsat EpicNG network, creating a global footprint and enabling high throughput services for our cruise, aeronautical and broadband customers in the Asia-Pacific region. It is only natural that we would entrust this important launch to our reliable partner, Arianespace”, added Ken Lee, Senior Vice President Space Systems at Intelsat.

“Horizons 3e is a significant project for both Intelsat and SKY Perfect JSAT. It will lead to the expansion of our next-generation business in Asia and the Pacific,” said Koki Koyama, Director of the Board & Senior Managing Executive Officer of SKY Perfect JSAT. “We are grateful to work once again with our good partner Arianespace and thus ensure the launch period to start the services as soon as practicable.”

About Intelsat

Intelsat S.A. (NYSE: I) operates the world’s first Globalized Network, delivering high-quality, cost-effective video and broadband services anywhere in the world. Intelsat’s Globalized Network combines the world’s largest satellite backbone with terrestrial infrastructure, managed services and an open, interoperable architecture to enable customers to drive revenue and reach through a new generation of network services. Thousands of organizations serving billions of people worldwide rely on Intelsat to provide ubiquitous broadband connectivity, multi-format video broadcasting, secure satellite communications and seamless mobility services. The end result is an entirely new world, one that allows us to envision the impossible, connect without boundaries and transform the ways in which we live. For more information, visit www.intelsat.com.

About SKY Perfect JSAT

SKY Perfect JSAT Corporation is a leader in the converging fields of broadcasting and communications. It is Asia’s largest satellite operator with a fleet of 18 satellites, and Japan’s only provider of both multi-channel pay TV broadcasting and satellite communications services. SKY Perfect JSAT delivers a broad range of entertainment through the SKY PerfecTV! platform, the most extensive in Japan with a total of 3.5 million subscribers. In addition, SKY Perfect JSAT’s satellite communications services, which cover Japan and the rest of Asia, as well as Oceania, Russia, Middle East, Hawaii and North America, play a vital role in supporting safety, security and convenience for society as a whole. For more information, please visit www.sptvjsat.com and www.jsat.net.

About Arianespace

Arianespace uses space to make life better on Earth by providing launch services for all types of satellites into all orbits. It has orbited more than 550 satellites since 1980, using its family of three launchers, Ariane, Soyuz and Vega, from launch sites in French Guiana (South America) and Baikonur, Kazakhstan. Arianespace is headquartered in Evry, near Paris, and has a technical facility at the Guiana Space Center, Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana, plus local offices in Washington, D.C., Tokyo and Singapore. Arianespace is a subsidiary of Airbus Safran Launchers, which holds 74% of its share capital, with the balance held by 17 other shareholders from the European launcher industry.