UNCERTAINTIES OVER THE FUTURE OF NIGCOMSAT 1R

 SONNY ARAGBA-AKPORE contends the communication satellite is neck-deep in debts

Nigeria’s only communications satellite, NigComSat 1R, is troubled and appears to be in a wheelchair,  struggling for survival. Its troubles began on February 14, 2014, immediately after the removal of its pioneer Chief Executive, Timasaniyu Ahmed Rufai, in alleged questionable circumstances. His removal was ordered by the then Communications Minister, Mrs Omobola Johnson, who later appointed a team to carry out a forensic examination of the company’s books since the launch of NigComSat 1R on December 19, 2011. Johnson named Ms Abimbola Alale as Ahmed-Rufai’s replacement. Before her appointment, Alale was Executive Director (Marketing). But not much came out of the forensic examination to date, except that the company appears to have seen better days and is swimming against the tide. ​With a bucket of troubles and an incorrigible wage bill, which is believed to be unsustainable, the Nigerian satellite is now being managed from Kashi, China, contrary to global standards, where communications satellites are usually managed locally by their operators from domestic ground stations. Strangely, the Nigerian satellite has not been a commercial success since its launch. Low patronage, very little confidence by local customers and a lack of investment by its owners, the government, may have accounted for this. But the Chinese who built it say NigComSat 1R has immense capacity for broadcasting and telecommunication services, with special potential for broadband connectivity, but local patronage is very poor. “There is no problem with the market,” because countries like Bolivia, with TKSat-1, the country’s first communications satellite, built at an estimated cost of around $300 million, similar to NIGCOMSAT-1R, generate between $10 million and $20 million yearly.  By 2020, it had earned more than $80 million over its first four years, averaging roughly $20 million yearly.

In South Africa, the South African National Space Agency (SANSA) and local partners such as CubeSpace, Simera Sense, and Astrofica generate revenue from satellite-based Earth-observation data, hardware components, and downstream applications.  In 2023, these companies were part of Africa’s broader commercial space sector, which included 327 firms collectively earning US$309 million. So, what is the problem with the Nigerian satellite that has not recorded any commercial success since its launch 15 years ago? Despite denials by officials of NigComSat 1R that it was not indebted to its partners, China Great Wall Industry Corporation (CGWIC), there is growing uncertainty that the satellite is swimming in troubled waters. Reports have it that managers of the satellite, Nigerian Communications Satellite Limited, are busy defending an $11.4 million debt owed to CGWIC for services rendered in hosting the satellite in the Kashi ground station in Xichang, China, since the ground station of NigComsat was damaged in 2019. Although NigComSat Limited denied this debt, CGWIC insists there is indeed a debt, even when no official statement says whether or not a debt was outstanding. Media reports say the debt is real.

Following the damage of the ground station in Abuja in 2019, the Kashi station in China became the main controlling station instead of playing the backup role it was initially designed for CGWIC built and launched the Satellite in Kashi on December 19, 2011 and has been working closely with its Nigerian partner, NigComsat Limited to maintain the satellite from the Karshi ground station to save the satellite from premature collapse. This help came at a cost as the NigComSat Limited entered into a management contract with CGWIC for the primary control of the satellite from Kashi in China. According to the terms of the contract, the Nigerian company was expected to pay CGWIC about $1.6m yearly for maintenance.
But as of December 2025, the Nigerian company allegedly failed to remit any payment and thus accumulated a debt of $11.4m. Several strategies adopted to recover the debt have failed to yield any meaningful results, including a letter of demand for payment and a threat to abort hosting the satellite if the debt was not paid. In a letter signed by the Director, Marketing, Africa at CGWIC, Liu Lan, the Chinese company asked the management of NigComSat Limited to inform its customers of the development because it wouldn’t guarantee the performance of the satellite should it fail to pay up the debt in 30 days. The letter reads, “As of December 31, 2025, the total net outstanding debt owed by NIGCOMSAT to CGWIC stood at USD11,442,335.89. This figure accounts for deductions for services NIGCOMSAT has been provided by us, yet the balance remains substantially unresolved. Regrettably, despite our continuous provision of essential Telemetry, Tracking, and Command (TT&C) services from Kashi China, no payments have been received from NIGCOMSAT Ltd. since 2019.”

The Kashgar Ground Station, also known as the Kashi Ground Station, is located in Xinchang, China. “We have controlled the satellite from 2019 until today,” Liu was quoted as explaining that the arrangement was originally allowed under a 2014 technical support agreement that established China’s ground station as a backup control facility.

But once the  Abuja system stopped functioning, CGWIC became the primary maintenance provider.
Under the 2014 agreement, Nigeria was required to pay CGWIC for both backup services and full operational control, according to Liu.  Although NIGCOMSAT declined to confirm the agreement, it admitted it had a support contract in place with the vendor but gave no details.
CGWIC officials were quoted as saying that the Primary control service alone costs more than $1 million yearly, while additional charges apply for backup operations and other technical services like equipment repair and purchase. The officials said that since 2019, the company has received no payment. “For over seven years, the unpaid fees accumulated into the $11.4 million debt now at the centre of the dispute. Despite the growing arrears, CGWIC continued providing services to avoid jeopardising the satellite. But how long this continues remains unclear, especially as the satellite gets to its terminal date.

NIGCOMSAT plans to launch two satellites in the next four years. They have named them as Nigcomsat 2A and 2B according to the Chief Executive, Jane Egerton-Idehen.

Aragba-Akpore is a member of THISDAY Editorial Board