|
A window into the world
To integrate the Russian economy into the world community it is very important to develop systems of telecommunications that never have been of high quality or reliability in this country. Recently Rostelecom, Svyazinvest, the Mininstry of communications have made serious progress in bridging the gap at scientific, technical and organisation levels.There appeared modern superlong fibre optic and radiorelay lines, there is now modern digital commutation equipment and international channels have been developed.The financial capacity of telecommunication projects in Russia is one of the biggest. And yet, the view of Russia in respect of its use of satellite communications for national economy shows that it is practically non-existent. Meanwhile, in the world around, the global space communication comprising telecommunications, computer, radio and television networks of many countries has been functional for decades. It enables one to exercise all types of communication with planes, ships, trains, cars as well as with any other users. It allows the use of computers, telexes, faxes and the telegraph for communication over vast territories. Such a system should prove even more useful for Russian enormous distances, especially for providing monitoring of movable, remote, inaccesible or technologicaly complex objects. To become an integral part of the system, to enter the information space of the planet we have to create teleports. There are already 78 such stations of satellite communications in the world. They form a universal quality communications for the planet enabling millions of peopleliving on different continents to easily get in touch with each other. In Russia, unfortunately, we have no such ports at present.
The development of a satellite communication system is an important part of the St.Petersburg informatization concept put forward by some academics and specialists. To realise this program a joint stock company “St.Petersburg teleport” has been established to be followed by our PIC “Fatherland” whose aim is to attract investments for the teleport. 50% of the company stock belongs to the city. To the present moment the progress in the realisation of the project has been obvious. Thorough research has led to the isolation of parameters needed for the communication network on the basis of the global Inmarsat system, the latter capable of interacting with moveable users in air, sea, or on ground as it was conceived as an international emergency rescue communication system. As one of the founders of the Inmarsat system since 1973, Russia has retained its obligations concerning transmission of SOS signals at sea. But we have no shore digital Inmarsat stations in the Indian and Atlantic ocean regions. Thus, we are unable to receive or transmit these signals over ground networks to our our rescue stations making the effectiveness of rescue operations considerably lower. Russian Inmarsat users, and their number today is 800, have always resorted to the services of foreign stations, which meant that profits for this type of communication have always gone to foreign companies. Out of 56 solutions suggested by Russian specialists in telecommunication the St.Petersburg project was considered the best in 1994. The business-plan for the teleport has been made with the participation of world-famous STET specialists (Italy), TACIS having given 180.000 ecu. In 8 months’ preparation the Italians have thoroughly collected all data on telecommunications in North-West, to be followed by a detailed marketing analysis of world, regional and city situation characteristics of a telecommunications market. Based on exhaustive information on all telecommunication systems, and on the negotiations with potential collective users, as well as the knowledge of price specifications of the equipment and communication services the business-plan makers have drawn a picture of an Inmarsat system functioning in St.Petersburg’s teleport. The picture looks promising, both in technical and economic aspects. It is enough to say, that in the beginning of its functioning in 1998 the teleport will start repaying already in 2000, to bring a further annual profit of 10 to 15 mln dollars. Confident of the effectiveness of the project, TACIS has alloted 1.2 mln ecu more, with some part of it spent on the education of specialists for the future teleport. They received their education in Great Britain and Italy. There is an agreement about further technical and financial help from TACIS for 3 mln ecu, to be supplied after the installation of equipment and the start of the teleport. Incidentally, as a result of the equipment delivery tender a winner has been named. It is the Norwegian company NERA that will supply the required equipment by the Inmarsat system for the sum of $14,426OOO to St.Petersburg. The equipment set will include shore ground stations with antennas to be placed in settlement Zhicharevo, Leningrad region, the commutation stations in St.Petersburg and communication lines connecting them.
The NERA offered the 70%-payment of the contract on the basis of credit agreement between PIC “Fatherland”and the Norwegian credit institute EXPORTFINANS, supported by the Finance Ministry of Norway. For the first time in the course of granting credits to Russia the Norwegian side is accepting the guarantee of a subject of the federation, St.Petersburg, and not of the Russian governement. A special purpose credit agreement and the guarantee agreement were signed early this year. The administration of St.Petersburg rendering its full support to the building of the teleport hopes to make the city a telecommunication capital of Russia, capable of providing high-quality digital local, long-distance and international communications on the basis of the best current technical solutions. The capacity of the existing long-distance telephone systems will be enhanced by 1/4. Also conditions will be created for connecting all national users with moveable objects wherever they happen to be. An effective remote monitoring of nuclear power plants, state of buildings, bridges, pipelines, the ecology of vast regions will become feasible, as well as of the probable floods, our yearly disaster. We shall have an opportunity of receiving any type of information including video information of the highest quality from any point of the globe.The teleport in action will enable us to attract additional information currents, which implies considerable profit coming from providing communications services to other regions and districts of Russia. It is also important that the new teleport will make the modernisation of the communication network for the city administration feasible as well as connect it with similiar networks of other subjects of the federation. Thus the teleport project has practically no opponents, but its implementation can begin only after the adoption by St.Petersburg Legislative Assembly of the draft law on Foreign Credit Guaranteed Provisions suggested by Norwegian EXPORTFINANS. A credit for 70% of teleport’s price, 10 mln dollars, is to be paid back by PIC “Fatherland” over 7 years city administration guarantee provided. This sum must be included into the city’s budget.
The teleport is one of the most profitable projects. The city will be an active participant in controlling a major telecommunication company likely to receive big payments for the provision of communication services to other regions, state and international organisations, shipment and fishing companies, gold and oil producers, aviation companies, motor transportation companies on long trips, railway transportations. According to expert opinion the profits which might run into millions of dollars a year would remain stable in the coming 20-25 years, without additional capital investment. As for the remaining 30%, which is the payment for the first part of the teleport, the money is to be found on a commercial basis, by attracting investors from Russia and abroad. At the moment the project, which seems to be in its final agreement stage, and practically ready for realisation, is rendered a great interest by major western telecommunication companies. Thus the teleport in St.Petersburg is sure to be! And it is to be in the year 1998-1999.
|
