Japan's space programme took a step towards the first commercial launch by its domestic H2-A rocket when South Korea's space agency chose Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd on Friday as a preferred bidder to launch its satellite, reported reuters. "Japan won the rights because it got the highest points among the bidders. We hope to conclude a deal by December," said Choi Hae-jin, an official at Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI). Mitsubishi Heavy, Japan's top heavy-machinery maker, was competing against Eurockot, a joint venture between Russia and Germany, to commercially launch South Korea's multipurpose satellite dubbed Arirang-3, a statement from KARI's website said on Friday. The Japanese space agency welcomed the move. "We have been developing this rocket, so if this is true, this is good news," a spokeswoman at Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency said. KARI's statement did not mention how much the launch would cost. Japan's Jiji news agency reported that it may be around 9 billion yen ($91.4 million). Mitsubishi Heavy, which took over the production and management of the H2-A rocket from Japan's space agency last year, has only launched government satellites to now. Japan's space programme, partly hampered by a former ban on military use of space, has struggled after failures to launch its rockets.
