TO THE STARS VIA ICT

The information and communication technology (ICT) industry, which has been declared a priority area for development, has stepped out at a qualitatively new level. At a time of global financial and economic downturn, when the economic "giants" of the world are cutting back on many large-scale projects, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has signed a resolution to introduce hi-technology into the establishment of a space industry.

The groundwork has been done! 

To dispel any doubts, let's say at the very outset that Azerbaijan has been moving towards such global changes for a long period and the basis exists for the formation of a highly-technological IT sector in the country. Here is a basic example: the number of PCs per 100 people has reached eight in the first half of 2009 alone. According to the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology (MCIT), there were seven Internet users per 100 people as of 1 July. Back in 2003 there was a total of 123,000 PCs in Azerbaijan, in 2007 there were 323,000 and, according to a State Statistical Committee report on the prospects for Azerbaijan's economic development to 2013, there will be 906,000 PCs in Azerbaijan in 2013. The proportion of families with an Internet connection will reach 50 per cent, compared with 8 per cent in 2003 and 28 per cent in 2007. The report stresses that there is a market for IT products and services in Azerbaijan, state-of-the-art services have been introduced (distance learning, IP-telephony, digital TV etc). The volume of investment in ICT has risen by 2.9 times since 2003, the import of equipment by 3.4 times, ICT products and services by 3.5 times. 

The listing of activities to be implemented to enhance the population's access to ICT could be continued. For example, the creation of innovative techno-parks, a regional innovation zone, the national super-computer centre and information and marketing stations for the introduction of electronic commerce, not to mention the forthcoming implementation of a global information exchange project, the "Trans-national Eurasian information super-artery", which will contribute to high-quality communication between West and East, while 20 countries from Europe and Asia will obtain easy access to the ICT, with the prospect of the unfolding of a new trans-national, gigantic information network in the region. 

"Long-term plans!" sceptics would say. However, the future is impossible without the past, and Azerbaijan certainly has the experience. The country has things to be proud of, including in the space industry. Of course, no rockets have been produced in Azerbaijan, but in 1974 the National Aero-space Agency began functioning within the Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences and its specialists contributed much to the glorious pages of USSR space science. A scientific production association was established within the agency in 1981 while soon after independence the Azerbaijan national aero-space agency was set up within the association. According to a presidential decree dated 27 September 2006, the agency was transferred to the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Defence Industry of the Azerbaijan Republic. The key directions of the agency's activities today lie in the implementation of state policy in the area of space research of the Earth, to develop and implement national aero-space programmes, to coordinate and participate in activities undertaken as part of international space projects and to utilize technological achievements in the interests of Azerbaijan's economic development and security.

There are several departments within the agency - the Institute of space research into natural resources, the scientific research institute of aero-space information science, the institute of the environment, the experimental space instrumentation plant, the special design and technology bureau and the special design bureau on space instrumentation. These are not just grand names. For example, the experimental space instrumentation plant which produced devices and equipment used on Salyut and Mir spacecraft for the study of space, surface and subsurface resources, and in dealing with the implications of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant disaster. Today the plant produces space science instrumentation from technical and technological documentation developed by the agency. It also produces various consumer goods and provides a large scope of services. 

In other words, there is a certain foundation for the establishment of another sector and, consequently, new high-technology, expensive and marketable export products, jobs and opportunities for the country to enter the honourable list of countries engaged in the development of space resources. Of course, the establishment of a space industry will take a matter of years. The state programme for the establishment and development of a space industry stipulates a number of measures for the organization of hi-tech production in the country. From 2009-2013, for example, Azerbaijan is to embark upon the assembly and production of VSAT satellite receiving and transmitting stations and other terminals, satellite receivers of different types and functions (Internet, direct TV, GPS etc.), the production of an element base and other equipment. From 2010-2011, equipment will be purchased to receive and process information from satellites, while from 2011-2012 the country will put national satellites onto orbit. The training of national personnel will also be organized with the participation of foreign specialists.

The MCIT is already stepping up activity in this direction by establishing the appropriate infrastructure. The ministry is currently considering the prospect of establishing a regional centre for space navigation systems which would play a crucial role in the development of a satellite navigation system intended for processing information about the movement and condition of different facilities. The resources of the AzerSpace national satellite will be used in the project.

The key objective of the state programme is to increase the competitiveness of new satellites, boost their commercial viability, establish fixed satellite systems, regulate prices for services provided via the new satellites, improve the satellite services infrastructure etc. The creation of a space industry and the receipt and processing of space information in Azerbaijan will be handled by the agency, while the management and operation of the telecommunications satellite will be entrusted to the AzerSpace OJSC. Under the new resolution, the MCIT is to coordinate the execution of the state programme. These measures are to be financed from the state budget and other legitimate sources (domestic and external investments, loans, grants etc). In other words, foreign investors can also contribute to the establishment of the space industry. 

December 2011 

From 2011-2012, Azerbaijan plans to launch two telecommunication satellites. The International Telecommunications Union has allocated three orbital positions to Azerbaijan, of which two are intended for the country's domestic needs and one for international use.

The first satellite, says Ali Abbasov, Minister of Communication and Information Technology, will be launched in December 2011. Following a tender process, the US Orbital Sciences Corporation will tackle the production and launch of the satellite into orbit. The project is valued at a total of AZN 164 million. Of this amount, AZN 86-87 million is the cost of the satellite, AZN 16 million goes to the main and reserve systems of satellite management, AZN 40 million is for the preparation and launch of the rocket and AZN 18 million is for comprehensive insurance. Production of the satellite is expected to commence in the US this month. It will be monitored by Azerbaijani specialists. Personnel will be trained at the same time. It is not yet known which launch site will be used but, according to Abbasov, Azerbaijan has been "offered the option of launching the national satellite from the Baikonur cosmodrome, using a Soviet rocket carrier".

The national satellite's coverage area will include a part of Europe and Asia. By entering the international satellite market, Azerbaijan will be engaged in satellite television and radio broadcasting services, Internet, data transmission, international telephone traffic etc.

It is no secret that only 15-20 per cent of satellite resources will be used by Azerbaijan, while the rest will be sold. It is not difficult to calculate that 80 per cent of satellite resources will be delivered to international markets and the main task now is to find buyers. Talks are currently under way and they have apparently been quite successful. "Experts and consultants from consulting companies are engaged in the talks. This allows us to hope that all 80 per cent of the satellite's resources will be marketed," the minister said.

A preliminary order for the acquisition of 40 per cent of satellite resources has already been placed by Malaysia, while the other 40 per cent are still open for bidding. Abbasov is convinced that AzerSpace is a commercially viable project, with a payback period of five to seven years; over the subsequent 15 years it will be bringing in pure profit. Before then the country has to create the appropriate infrastructure and train personnel so that Azerbaijan can service the satellites itself. Who knows, Azerbaijan may host a cosmodrome at some time in the future…

In fact, back in February President Aliyev told the US CNBC channel, "Azerbaijan is on the threshold of establishing its own space industry." He pointed out that the activities envisaged in the ICT sector will enable Azerbaijan to enter a new phase of development. "As is known, the future belongs not to oil and gas but to technological development. Reserves of oil and gas will sooner or later be depleted, while knowledge and technology will always dominate the world. Today, the leading countries of the world are those investing in the ICT sector and possessing the most advanced technological capacities," Aliyev explained. 

The president added that techno-parks and regional innovations also form part of the state programme. 

"We are prepared for initial state investment. Of course, we would welcome foreign and local investment as well but, to give impetus to this initiative, we need to make the necessary preparations and create an infrastructure to attract investors. We have to look attractive for potential investors in the ICT sector, as we have with the energy sector," Aliyev said.