Brasília, 6/27/2003 (Agência Brasil - ABr) - Yesterday the president of the Brazilian Space Agency (AEB), Luiz Bevilacqua, met with directors of the French National Center for Space Studies (Centro Nacional de Estudos Espaciais da França) (CNES), who announced that France was dropping out of a cooperation program for a Franco-Brazilian satellite.

However, the French have offered to donate all the equipment for the program they already have, plus technical support, subsystem testing of the satellite in French labs, and assist with controls, software and oversight of the project.

Budget cuts in France are responsible for not only pulling out of the Brazilian project, but will also mean less French participation in projects with India, and the Mars Project which is a joint effort by NASA and the European Space Agency.

The Franco-Brazilian satellite project dates from 1996. It was originally to place a 100 kilo satellite in orbit carrying some nine experiments. It was to have been launched in 2004, at a cost of US$10 million. (AB)