SpaceX to launch a Thai broadcasting satellite

SpaceX to launch a Thai broadcasting satelliteSpaceX has said on Monday that it will launch a Thai television broadcasting satellite from Cape Canaveral in 2013.

The Thaicom 6 satellite will be launched aboard a Falcon 9 sometime in 2013 to cater to the growing demand in the region. SpaceX did not disclose the exact value of the deal but a standard Falcon 9 flight costs $54 million.

Thaicom Public Company Ltd had announced the $160 million satellite project May 31, which will allow the company to expand the company's business in satellite television broadcasting over Southeast Asia and South Asia.

SpaceX, which is a brain child of PayPal co-founder and Tesla Motors CEO Elon Musk, has already been chosen by NASA for testing rockets and spacecraft that could do supply runs to the International Space Station.