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SES and ILS Announce the Extension of the SES Multi Launch Agreement to Six Firm Missions Through 2014

The first SES launch under the MLA was the successful ILS Proton launch of SES-1 on April 24, 2010. In addition, two of the four SES missions scheduled in 2011 and 2012 for the launches of the SES-3, SES-4, QuetzSat-1 and SES-5/ASTRA 4B satellites will be part of the MLA. The remaining three MLA missions will be assigned as needed and in principle cover the 2012 - 2014 time frame. In addition, Proton will provide back-up launch capability for SES missions in 2011 as part of the increased flexibility and improved schedule assurances under the Multi Launch Agreement.

The Proton vehicle, built by ILS majority owner Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center, is Russia's premier heavy-lift launcher and has a heritage of 359 flights since the 1960's. In the past 26 months, Proton has launched 25 successful consecutive missions.

Frank McKenna, President of ILS, stated: "SES had the foresight, several years ago, to create this innovative agreement to provide launch diversity and schedule assurance for the majority of their launch needs. With this agreement, SES has taken a sound business approach, in the form of a partnership, to create flexible arrangements to deploy their fleet. This expansion of the MLA further underscores the confidence that SES has in ILS Proton. With these new missions, the ILS and Khrunichev team look forward to delivering the same quality and reliability that SES has counted on for 15 years."

Romain Bausch, President and CEO of SES, concurred, "The Multi Launch Agreement has allowed us to support the continuous development and replacement of our global satellite fleet, giving us an additional competitive edge. With ILS, we have a long history together and we look forward to continue the collaborating with the ILS and Khrunichev teams on Proton in the framework of the extended agreement."

About ILS and Khrunichev

ILS is a world leader in providing launch services for global satellite operators and offers a complete array of services and support, from contract signing through mission management and on-orbit delivery. ILS has exclusive rights to market the Proton vehicle to commercial satellite operators worldwide and is a U.S. company headquartered in Reston, VA., near Washington, D.C. For more information, visit www.ilslaunch.com.

Khrunichev, which holds the majority interest in ILS, is one of the cornerstones of the Russian space industry. Khrunichev manufactures the Proton system and is developing the Angara launch system. The Proton launches from facilities at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, and has a heritage of 359 missions since 1965. Khrunichev includes, among its branches, a number of key manufacturers of launch vehicle and spacecraft components in Moscow and in other cities of the Russian Federation. For more information, visit www.khrunichev.com.

About SES

SES (Euronext Paris and Luxembourg Stock Exchange: SESG) wholly owns the market-leading satellite operators SES ASTRA and SES WORLD SKIES and participations in Ciel in Canada QuetzSat in Mexico, as well as a strategic participation in satellite infrastructure start-up O3b Networks. SES provides outstanding satellite communications solutions via a global fleet of 44 satellites. For further information: www.ses.com

Media inquiries:
International Launch Services
Karen Monaghan, +1-571-633-7549
Director of Communications
Mobile: +1-571-282-5195
k.monaghan@ilslaunch.com
or
SES
Yves Feltes, +352 710725311
Vice-President Media Relations
Mobile: +352 621 168 703
yves.feltes@ses.com