Aerospace firm China Satcom has filed an insurance claim over the ChinaSat-18 communications satellite, after it failed to communicate with the satellite after it was deemed lost in space.
According to a report by SpaceNews, the insurance claim for ChinaSat-18, which was insured for US$250 million, has long been expected.
On August 19, the satellite was launched into space using a Long March 3B launch vehicle from Xichang Satellite Launch Center in Sichuan Province, China. Following separation from the launch vehicle, ground control was unable to establish contact with the satellite.
State-owned China Satcom, in an announcement to the Shanghai Stock Exchange, said that while the launch and separation were successful, communication was unable to be established, and investigations revealed that the satellite suffered a complete power failure.
The report said that the satellite’s insurance policy was underwritten by the People’s Insurance Company of China and was reinsured on the international market.
The incident comes as a blow to the satellite insurance market. In July, a Vega rocket’s launch failure destroyed the Falcon Eye-1 remote sensing satellite that was insured by the UAE for around US$415 million. The payouts for the two incidents combined will likely exceed the total insurance premiums paid in 2019, the report said.
