Canadian satellite operator Telesat has raised $550 million in new debt and has used the extra funds to pay down $500 million of older debt five years early (that was due to be repaid in November 2024).

That old debt was charging Telesat 8.875 percent in interest — the new borrowings are priced at 6.5 percent and are not due until October of 2027. The debt offering was originally designed to raise $500 million and that is an extra $50 million over and above Telesat’s initial plan that was announced at the end of September.

Journalist
Chris Forrester.

Headquartered in Ottawa, Canada, with offices and facilities around the world, the company’s fleet consists of 16 GEO satellites, the Canadian payload on ViaSat-1 as well as one Phase 1 LEO satellite that is the start of Telesat’s planned advanced global LEO satellite constellation that will offer ultra-low latency, extremely high throughput, affordable broadband services. Privately held, Telesat’s principal shareholders are Canada’s Public Sector Pension Investment Board and Loral Space & Communications.