The Chinese Great Wall Industry Corporation is to replace Nigeria’s first-ever communications satellite, which failed in orbit 10 Nov. 2008, according to local media reports. The agreement to replace the satellite, tagged ‘NigComSat-1’, was signed by the Chinese firm and the Nigerian Communications Satellite Limited 12 Dec. 2008. The construction of the replacement satellite, dubbed ‘NigComSat-1R’, will start as soon as President Umaru Yar’Adua approves the agreement. The failure of the satellite, blamed on its power system, jolted Africa’s most populous nation and elicited criticisms of the Yar’Adua administration by opposition, which said the situation surrounding the failure was poorly handled. The Nigerian Communications Satellite Ltd. has moved its customers to another satellite to mitigate the impact of the failure.
