"The launch was made as scheduled at 01:48 am Moscow time (2148 GMT)," an official of Russia's Khrunichev space centre was quoted as saying.

The 4,850-kilogramme (10,670-pound) Nimiq-4 satellite, constructed by EADS Astrium, was launched for Telesat Canada to improve the quality of television broadcasts across Canada during its 15-year expected lifespan, the news agency reported.