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Elon Musk-led Starlink has said that it has received encouraging feedback from the Indian government, with whom the satellite internet firm is continuing “active discussion”, despite reports of it being “frozen” approval for the company to begin commercial operations in India.
According to a senior company official, the government of India and Starlink had “productive and active” discussions regarding its capabilities to advance India’s connectivity goals.
“Starlink remains in active and productive discussions with the Government of India, contrary to misleading stories based upon unsubstantiated claims from anonymous sources. We have worked with the Government through all of the required regulatory and compliance processes in a transparent and responsible manner,” Lauren Dreyer, Vice President, Starlink Business Operations, said on social media platform X.
“We have heard nothing but encouraging feedback on Starlink’s capabilities and its potential to advance India’s connectivity ambitions, especially in remote and underserved regions. We remain fully committed to India and to working with the Government to bring Starlink’s services very soon to the country,” she added.
Dreyer said that Starlink has worked with the government through all of the required regulatory and compliance processes in a transparent and responsible manner.
“To align with India’s sovereign technology, regulatory and security requirements, Starlink has set up a bespoke deployment model for India that further demonstrates our commitment to working within India’s strategic framework,” she added.
Starlink has applied for a licence to start satellite communications services in India. The government has issued a letter of intent to the company, and the final license is awaited.
The latest clarification from the senior company official came in response to a source-based report claiming that India has effectively frozen approvals for Starlink to begin commercial operations. According to a Bloomberg report, the government has raised concerns about the use of Starlink satellite terminals in the Iran war.
The government has issued licences to two other applicants in the segment- Bharti Group-backed Eutelsat Oneweb and Jio-SGS(Space Technology Ltd). The two companies are now awaiting spectrum allocation to roll out their services.
SpaceX is going for an Initial Public Offering (IPO), which is expected to price what could become the largest in history through a Nasdaq listing, targeting a valuation of around $1.75 trillion.
According to a Bloomberg report, Starlink is central to the company’s revenue growth story, making regulatory hurdles in major markets such as India particularly significant.
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