Aussie satellite shake-up as Vocus takes on Elon Musk’s Starlink

Macquarie-backed Vocus is partnering with Canadian-based satellite provider Telesat to launch a new network in Australia to rival Elon Musk’ Starlink.

Elon Musk’s Starlink is facing more competition after Vocus and Telesat announced a new low earth orbit satellite deal.

Macquarie-backed Vocus is partnering with Canadian-based satellite provider Telesat to launch a new network in Australia to rival Elon Musk’s Starlink.

The two companies will create a “lightspeed” low earth orbit satellite network, saying competition is needed in the burgeoning sector to “strengthen Australia’s digital infrastructure resilience”.

It comes as this masthead revealed that Optus was considering partnering with other satellite providers after its much-hyped deal with Starlink became bogged down in delays.

Vocus, which is also backed by Aware Super, is stepping up its telecommunications investments, acquiring TPG’s government and enterprise fixed and fibre assets – including its NBN competitor Vision Network – for $5.25bn last year.

As part of the Telesat deal, Vocus will build and operate a landing station in NSW to connect to Telesat’s low earth orbit satellite constellation.

Telesat will begin launching its LEO satellites in late 2026, with the landing station. The landing station will connect Telesat’s LEO satellite constellation - called Telesat Lightspeed - to terrestrial networks, providing “secure, low-latency satellite services across the region”.

Ashley Neale, head of Vocus space and wireless operations, said recent outages of major digital infrastructure in Australia and around the world have shown how important connectivity is to society.

He said having multiple LEO satellite providers would give Australian organisations better protection from digital meltdowns, given different networks used in combination would mean an outrage at one provider would not cause widespread communication blackouts.

“We’re proud to be partnering with Telesat on establishing its network in Australia,” Mr Neale said.

“Vocus already has 30 ground stations currently in operation or contracted to be built, demonstrating that our infrastructure provides the critical reliability needed for LEO networks.”

A new satellite network is set to be launched in Australia. Picture: Supplied

European leaders are also reportedly scrambling to break their dependency on Mr Musk’s satellite service after the billionaire said earlier this year that “Ukraine’s entire front line would collapse” if he switched off Starlink. But that was before his relationship with Donald Trump imploded.

Mr Neale said a “unique feature” of the ‘Telesat Lightspeed’ service will be its terminal-to-terminal direct connectivity capability, eliminating the need for terrestrial links for customers transmitting especially sensitive information.

“This will enable, for example, a naval vessel to communicate via the Telesat Lightspeed satellites directly with ground-deployed soldiers via the optical laser-linked space network, completely bypassing land-based infrastructure or the public internet.

“This capability will be extremely valuable to customers with mission-critical communications requirements and a desire to preserve data sovereignty even outside of Australia’s geographic borders.”

Chief network and information officer Asit Tandon said the station will “play a key role in satellite testing and customer field trials before global service delivery”.

“As a leading provider of landing stations and fibre network solutions, Vocus is an ideal partner to deliver the resilient, scalable terrestrial Infrastructure that not only serves as a key interconnect point for customer data, but also further strengthens Australia’s digital infrastructure resilience,” Mr Tandon said.

Optus had hoped to launch such a service with Starlink late last year, but it has since faced indefinite delays, with the telco citing regulatory hurdles. This masthead understands Optus is exploring joining with other providers — as well as Starlink — as a coverage war between Australia’s top three telcos intensifies.

An Optus spokesperson said: “We remain committed to using low earth orbit (LEO) satellite direct-to-mobile technology to connect our customers in the best way possible.

“Optus is working with Starlink among others to determine the best possible customer experience and will confirm when any decisions are made.”

Australia’s main telcos have been signing deals with US satellite providers to expand coverage. Even government-owned NBN Co is looking to provide wholesale LEO satellite services after sales of its much-maligned Sky Muster offering fell.

Telstra launched a new satellite to text messaging service last week, making it possible to send or receive texts from outdoor locations when mobile coverage is out of range. The service is designed to help farmers in a back paddock, a person on a remote hike or someone who’s broken down or has a flat tyre on a country road.

Vodafone owner TPG Telecom has a non-exclusive agreement with Lynk Global that will connect standard mobile phones to Lynk’s constellation of LEO satellites, closing coverage gaps in rural and remote parts of the country.

Originally published as Aussie satellite shake-up as Vocus takes on Elon Musk’s Starlink