MOSCOW, December 8. /TASS/. The launch of Russia's Proton-M carrier rocket with the Yamal-401 telecommunications satellite will take place on December 15, a day earlier than scheduled, Russia’s space agency Roscosmos said on Monday.

“The launch of Yamal-401 satellite is due on December 15,” the agency told TASS.

Initially, the lift-off of the Russian telecoms satellite was scheduled for December 2. However, the event was postponed until December 16 amid the delayed launch of Europe's Astra-2G.

The Yamal-401 satellite, designed and built by ISS-Reshetnev Company for Russian operator Gazprom Space Systems, is capable of continuously relaying signals in Europe and Asia. The satellite has 53 transponders and six antennas in C/Ku-bands.

The Yamal-401 is the third spacecraft built on the basis of a heavy-class Express-2000 platform. The mass of the satellite is 2,976 kg, the power used to carry the payload is 11 kWt, and the life span is 15 years.