On Wednesday (November 15), the government of Mexico announced that Starlink, the satellite internet company operated by Elon Musk’s aerospace company SpaceX, secured a contract a 1.56 billion peso ($89.80 million) contract to offer free internet in Mexico until the end of 2026.
Carlos Emiliano Calderon, head of Mexico’s digital strategy, stated during a regular government morning press briefing that Starlink won the contract because it offered the cheapest costs in the public tender offer. Calderon stated that Mexico had signed contracts for free internet service with nine companies, and Starlink is one of them.
Reportedly, Starlink will also provide infrastructure for Mexico’s state energy firm through December 2026. The contract with Mexico’s Comision Federal de Electricidad (CFE) is worth between 887.5 and 1.8 billion pesos.
The development comes just two months after Starlink announced that it had reached 2 million active users in over 60 countries across all seven continents. Starlink went from 500,000 users to over 2 million active Starlink customers in just four months.
At present, Starlink allows consumers to try out its service for 30 days, and if they are not satisfied with it, they can return the connection and receive a full refund.
Starlink is also attempting to obtain all necessary governmental licences for the Indian market. If the government approves, the company could shortly receive the GMPCS (Global Mobile Personal Communication by Satellite) licence. Apart from the GMPCS licence, Starlink is seeking clearance from other agencies such as the Department of Space and IN-SPACe.
Last month, Elon Musk announced that Starlink will connect internationally recognised organisations in Gaza. This move by Musk has angered Israel who said that Hamas would use this internet for its terrorist activities.
Starlink provides satellite internet service through a constellation of around 5000 small satellites in low earth orbit launched by SpaceX. Consumers need a terminal including a small dish antenna to access the service.
