MOSCOW, July 16. /ITAR-TASS/. Two space satellites for India will be manufactured in Russia - the agreement on the design and production of the spacecraft was signed in the UK on Wednesday at the Farnborough International Airshow. The customer is India’s telecommunications company Aniara Communications Pvt. Ltd. and the contractor - Dauria research and production enterprise, Russian unit of the Dauria Aerospace private space company.

“Small satellites are an ideal solution if there is the lack of the needed volumes of satellite communication and broadcasting that India has at present,” Aniara President Raghu Das said.

“Small spacecraft make it possible to profitably service small markets that are unprofitable for heavier and costly geostationary systems,” Dauria Aerospace said.

Deputy head of the Russian Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos) Denis Lykov said that the agency supports the appearance in the sector of new private players that improve its export potential.

“The signing of the deal is an important step for the formation of Russia’s new space economy and we are ready to support such companies as Dauria Aerospace in the national market and outside it,” he said.

Dauria Aerospace is a multinational aerospace company providing global satellite-based remote sensing information services through the deployment of small satellite constellations. The company develops and manufactures new generation low-cost small satellites to bring Earth imaging data and communication services directly to its customers. Additionally, by using design innovation and leveraging the rapid technology advances in smallsat components, Dauria develops lower-cost and higher performing satellites. Dauria is headquartered in Munich and has two satellite development centres at NASA’s Research Park at Ames Research Centre in California and in Skolkovo, Russia. In early July, Russia placed into orbit the first Russian private satellite DX1, made by Dauria Aerospace for the automatic ship location system.

Aniara was established in 2001 to advise and support global telecommunications and high technology enterprises expand their activities in emerging markets in Asia, the Middle East, and Africa. Aniara has offices in thw United States and India and concentrates on the communications and high technology industries and in particular the satellite sector, including satellite-based services and applications over fixed and mobile satellite systems and terrestrial networks. Aniara represents a variety of industry-recognised clients, including DTH and FTA broadcasters, telcos and carriers, system integrators, governments, and VSAT operators.