Ontario signs $100M deal with Elon Musk's Starlink system

Elon Musk, CEO and CTO of SpaceX, introduces the SpaceX Dragon V2 spaceship at the SpaceX headquarters in Hawthorne, Calif. on May 29, 2014. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP-Jae C. Hong

Premier Doug Ford's government has signed a $100-million deal with Elon Musk's SpaceX to deliver high-speed internet to remote residents in rural and northern Ontario.

The new program called ONSAT — which stands for Ontario Satellite Internet — will bring SpaceX's Starlink satellite internet system to 15,000 premises, said Infrastructure Minister Kinga Surma.

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"These communities will gain access to high-speed satellite internet capable of supporting streaming video calls, online gaming and more activities that have become second nature to so many of us," Surma said.

The service will be used to connect people in the hardest-to-reach areas of the province to the internet, she said.

The system will go live next June with eligibility and registration starting in the spring.

The province will cover equipment and installation costs, but not monthly fees.

"It is an investment of close to $100 million," Surma said.

Ford highlighted the investment in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.

"Cool," replied Musk, who also owns X.

SpaceX won after a "robust and transparent and competitive and fair technical and financial evaluation of multiple qualified parties," said Michael Lindsay, CEO of Infrastructure Ontario.

Indigenous "engagement and participation" is part of the contract Infrastructure Ontario signed with SpaceX, he said.

"SpaceX is going to engage directly with Indigenous communities to ensure equal access to the program and to create socio-economic opportunities through employment contracting and training opportunities," Lindsay said.

Installation is relatively straightforward and fast, said Joel Cherkis, who runs the business operations for Starlink.

They saw early success in 2020 when they rolled out the Starlink system to the people of Pikangikum First Nation in northwestern Ontario. The remote community is only accessible by air or an ice road in the winter.

"The Starlink team that was working with them found that within 15 minutes of getting the Starlink kit off of the charter flight that arrived at the First Nation, they were able to be online and actually connecting users to high-speed broadband," Cherkis said.

SpaceX launches about 40 satellites per week into the lower orbit, about 550 kilometres above Earth, he said.

The move is part of the province's $4-billion plan to deliver high-speed projects to every corner of Ontario. It has so far invested $2.5 billion in 270 projects, Surma said. That has connected 100,000 Ontarians to high-speed internet, and there are plans to connect 450,000 more. 

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 14, 2024.