Ukraine Receives Funding From Allies To Bring In 10,000 More Starlink Terminals

Just weeks after reports emerged of a price hike on Starlink’s internet service in war-torn Ukraine, there’s finally some good news: the country has secured funding to buy an additional 10,000 terminals to combat the ongoing assault on its network. 

Deputy Prime Minister Mykhailo Fedorov announced that several countries within the European Union have agreed to chip in towards the bill, which Starlink CEO Elon Musk had previously stated could not be supplied for free to the nation indefinitely. 

In a letter obtained by CNN, the company reported it was losing an estimated US$20 million per month, and that it was “not in a position to further donate terminals to Ukraine, or fund the existing terminals for an indefinite period of time.” 

Though, later, it appeared the billionaire changed his mind and tweeted that he would continue providing terminals to Ukraine at no cost “even though Starlink is still losing money and other companies are getting billions” of taxpayer dollars. 

While it has not been publicly disclosed which countries are contributing towards the funding, it seems the additional terminals will aid the country greatly, as Fedorov told Bloomberg that the nation was “ready to live without electricity for a month,” if mobile networks still worked.

The forthcoming shipment of Starlink will be used to stabilize the internet connection within the region for “critical situations,” though it appears that should more terminals need to be purchased in the future, Ukraine will have to source another round of funding in early 2023. 

[via Gizmodo and TechCrunch, cover image via Rafael Henrique | Dreamstime.com]