Telesat, a satellite services firm, posted a net loss of $72 million in its second quarter of 2010 compared with a $187 million profit at the same time last year, blaming a weaker United States dollar for most of the loss.
The Ottawa-based firm, which operates in Canadian currency, has a large debt in U.S. currency from expansion in 2007.
Also, chief Telesat partner and satellite manufacturer Loral Space & Communications Inc. posted a net loss of $19.7 million in its second-quarter ending June 30, in results released Monday.
By comparison, it had a $74.3 million profit at the same time last year. Loral, which has a 64 per cent economic and 33 per cent voting stake in Telesat, stated the loss was due to the widening foreign exchange gap.
But in a conference call with analysts last week, Mr. Goldberg remained coy on the possibility of a foreign takeover.
"It will give us access to additional sources of capital and more strategic capability as we seek to enhance our corporate profile," he said, but in response to an analyst question, added he wasn't allowed to say what the Telesat board thought of the possibility.
"That would be reviewed under the Investment Canada Act ... the applicable test that they apply is a net benefit case, somewhat analogous to the public interest test in the U.S. Basically we would have to demonstrate that the change in ownership, in control, has a net benefit in Canada."
As for the option to grow its revenues through acquiring other firms or satellite business, Mr. Goldberg said Telesat would welcome the idea – but the chances of that happening are few.
"If we could accelerate (our growth) ... we'd be all over that, but the fact of the matter is there is a paucity of opportunities out there. Not that they never come along, but they don't come along as often as we like."
Fellow space firm MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates Ltd. attempted a $1.3-billion sale of its space division in 2008, but that was quashed by then-industry minister Jim Prentice.
Mr. Prentice's concerns, which echoed that of industry, were that data from MDA's top satellite RADARSAT would fall into United States hands. RADARSAT images are routinely used for sovereignty applications.
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