MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

China will construct Bolivia’s first satellite; Morales travels to Beijing

President Evo Morales wants Bolivia to have its own satellite

Bolivian president Evo Morales will be travelling to China next March to sign an agreement for the construction and launching of the country’s first telecommunications satellite, reported Bolivian government sources on Sunday.

Public Works, Services and Housing minister Walter Delgadillo said that Morales would be travelling “in the second half of March” to consolidate the project.

“In the second half of March the president is travelling to China to sign a commercial contract for the construction of a satellite and 36 months later the satellite will be in orbit”, said Delgadillo.

A committee of at least fourteen Chinese experts is expected in the next few days in La Paz to meet with their Bolivian peers and “advance the project for the configuration of the satellite, its orbital position and different uses which have been planned”, he added.

Delgadillo said that the project should be finalized by the end of the month so that Morales can travel with all the information to sign the contract for the project which will have a cost of 300 million US dollars.

Bolivian Deputy Telecommunication Minister Roy Mendez had previously announced that 300 million USD project would be funded by a secured credit from a Chinese bank and the counterpart in the project is the Chinese Great Wall Industrial Corp.

Delgadillo said that Bolivia opted for China because the country “has a great proven technological capacity and can also extend soft loans”.

President Morales wants the satellite to improve Bolivia’s communications mainly the isolated hinterland and has named it Tupac Katari, in honour of a leader of the indigenous uprisings following the end of the colonial rule.