ArmInfo. Armenia has used state funds not only to purchase the satellite, but also to construct a ground station and provide training for specialists. This was stated by Mkhitar Hayrapetyan, the Minister of High-Tech Industry of Armenia, during a press conference. "In addition to this, there were no extra expenses," he noted.
According to the minister, a large volume of satellite images has been received over the past two years. However, Hayrapetyan noted that he does not intend to answer, now or in the future, for what purposes these images were used. In this regard, he considered it inappropriate for the Spanish company (SATLANTIS - ed.) from which Armenia purchased the satellite and which carried out the management at the first stage to be informed of the purposes the images are used for. Additionally, he expressed dissatisfaction with the fact that the company gives interviews to Armenian media outlets, where they express their assessments. In this regard, the head of the department called on the Spanish partners to maintain the nature of the partnership and stay within the scopes of their mandates. Hayrapetyan noted that acquiring the satellite marks Armenia's first steps in the space sector, allowing the country to establish skills and knowledge in the field.
He also noted that, starting in 2024, the satellite will be under Armenian management. "This means that we have developed the necessary competencies within our country to attract relevant investments in this area in the future," he said.
Let us recall that on May 25, 2022, the first Armenian satellite (working name - ARMSAT_1) was successfully launched from Cape Canaveral into low Earth orbit. The launch was organized by the Spanish company SATLANTIS. On June 6, SATLANTIS announced the conclusion of a contract to supply a complete Earth observation system to the Armenian subsidiary of the RA Ministry of High-Tech Industry, Geocosmos.
