Elon Musk’s Starlink To Compete Against MTN Nigeria, Others By December

Starlink, the Internet company owned by billionaire, Elon Musk, will begin operations in Nigeria in December 2022, the Nigerian government has revealed.

Musk had revealed that Starlink, a subsidiary of SpaceX, will commence operation in the third quarter of 2022, however, the internet provider is yet to start offering its services to Nigerians.

During the recently held US-Space Forum and US-Africa Leaders’ Summit in Washington, Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Isa Pantami, said Starlink will begin operation before the year ends.

The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has already issued Internet Service Provider (ISP) licence to Starlink, and the firm is currently undergoing some administrative processes.

This means at the end of the fourth quarter this year, Starlink will compete with other Internet service providers like MTN Nigeria, Airtel, Globacom, 9mobile, and Spectranet.

Pantami said SpaceX’s application as a High Throughput Satellite (HTS) Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) Operator has been approved, adding that, “The nationwide rollout shall take place before the end of 2022, after the conclusion of a few administrative processes.”

He explained that the partnership between the government and Space X is for Musk’s internet service provider “to provide broadband access across the whole of Nigeria, enabling nationwide access to broadband connectivity way ahead of the December 2025 schedule, as outlined in our National Broadband Plan.

“With this collaboration with SpaceX’s Starlink, Nigeria is set to be the 1st African country to introduce the service.” He told participants at the event.

Nigerians Tired Of MTN, Glo, Airtel, Can Now Order For Starlink

Prime Business Africa had revealed that Nigerians can now book Starlink’s service ahead of its commencement, as the network provider is now available in 32 countries around the world.

According to checks, countries are now placed under three categories, “Available”, “Wait list” and “Coming soon”.

With Nigeria under the Wait list category, based on Abuja region, Nigerians can order ahead to beat future inflation or further depreciation of naira when Starlink’s internet becomes available in the country.