Musk’s Starlink in Talks With South Africa to Start Service

(Bloomberg) -- Elon Musk’s Starlink is holding talks with the South African government to introduce the satellite service in Africa’s biggest and most developed economy, President Cyril Ramaphosa said.

Musk and Ramaphosa held talks over potential investments, the president told reporters on Friday.

Musk, who was born in South Africa, is the world’s richest person. Last week, Zimbabwe became the 16th nation in Africa to get access to the high-speed Internet service, according to a map published on Starlink’s website.

“I have had discussions with him and have said, Elon, you become so successful and you’re investing in a variety of countries, I want you to come home and invest here,” Ramaphosa told reporters in Pretoria. “He and I are going to have a further discussion.”

The president said Starlink made the approach. A spokesperson for Starlink didn’t respond to an earlier request for comment.

Last Sunday, in response to a post on X about how South Africa needs Starlink, Musk said that it is “waiting for regulatory approval.”

Starlink delivers broadband internet beamed down from a network of roughly 5,500 satellites that SpaceX started deploying in 2019.

The service has 2.6 million customers globally. However, Starlink remains absent in some major economies, including Taiwan, due to local ownership requirements.

Companies operating in South Africa also require a degree of Black ownership in an effort to redress inequities stemming from apartheid. Alternative arrangement can be made after talks with the government.

On Friday United Airlines Holdings Inc. announced a deal for Starlink to power its inflight Wi-Fi, becoming the first major US carrier to use the satellite system and giving the Musk-run company a marquee customer.

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(Updates to add United Airlines deal in final paragraph.)