U.S.-based SpaceX, owned by American billionaire Elon Musk, plans to pour US$1.5 billion into Starlink satellite Internet services in Vietnam.

Tim Hughes, senior vice-president for global business and government affairs, presented the plan to Vietnamese Party General Secretary and State President To Lam in New York on Wednesday, on the sidelines of the United Nations Summit of the Future and the General Debate of the 79th session of the UN General Assembly.   

During the meeting, Hughes said that SpaceX – which designs spacecraft, provides satellite launch services, and hosts satellite communications – has hosted satellite Internet services for five years using a system of 6,000 satellites which currently operate in low earth orbit and have the capability to provide Internet services almost anywhere on the planet. 

Given Vietnam’s potential as a key market for SpaceX’s expansion, Hughes shared plans to invest $1.5 billion in order to provide Starlink satellite Internet services in the Southeast Asian country in the near future.

The project aims to assist the Vietnamese government in realizing its policy to universalize Internet access to all citizens, Hughes said, adding that he hopes to have relevant Vietnamese agencies' back.

Emphasizing that Vietnam considers digital transformation as a key driver of the country’s development, the Vietnamese leader expressed support for the SpaceX initiative and shared his expectation that it would lead to further SpaceX investment in Vietnam. 

Lam also extended thanks to SpaceX for its offer of support for the northern Vietnamese localities devastated by super typhoon Yagi, which made landfall in northern Vietnam on September 7, and expressed his hope that the group’s satellite Internet services would support Vietnam in responding to future natural disasters.

During a meeting with Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh on September 6, Hughes commended Vietnam's investment climate and expressed SpaceX's readiness to invest in providing Starlink satellite Internet services to enhance the country's education, training, and disaster prevention efforts.

Hughes suggested that Vietnam ready its infrastructure to support Starlink in contributing to the nation’s efforts to provide Internet coverage to 100 percent of its population.

SpaceX launched Starlink satellite Internet services in the U.S. in October 2020.

It currently serves three million customers in more than 100 countries around the world.

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