Iridium, which has 305,000 subscribers and provides voice and data mobile satellite services, is being bought by GHL Acquisition Corp., which is 17.5-percent owned by investment bank Greenhill & Co..

"Iridium is the fastest growing full service voice and data MSS (mobile satellite service) provider and only one of a handful of players in its industry," said Scott Bok, co-chief executive officer of Greenhill.

As part of the deal, Greenhill agreed to invest nearly 23 million dollars in Iridium while GHL Acquisition agreed to repay Iridium's outstanding debt of 131 million dollars.

The Bethesda, Maryland-based Iridium, which will retain its current management, will be renamed Iridium Communications when the deal goes through and will seek a listing on the Nasdaq.

Iridium offers satellite voice and data communications from areas where land lines and terrestrial-based wireless services are unavailable.

It operates a network of 66 low-earth orbiting satellites, the largest commercial satellite constellation in the world, covering he entire Earth, including oceans, airways and the polar regions.

Iridium, launched a decade ago by US group Motorola and international partners, went into bankruptcy after failing to get enough subscribers to cover its costs.

A privately held venture acquired Iridium at bargain-basement price of 25 million dollars in a deal approved by a bankruptcy court in 2000.

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