Image: Starlink
The now-cancelled agreement between Ontario, Canada, and SpaceX was first signed in November 2024. It was designed to provide satellite internet to roughly 15,000 homes in the northern and rural parts of the province through the Ontario Satellite Internet (ONSAT) program.
At the time, the $100 million deal was seen by some government sources as a way to build a positive relationship with the incoming U.S. administration due to Elon Musk’s close ties to Donald Trump.
However, the relationship soured as trade tensions escalated. Premier Doug Ford announced he would be ripping up the contract in early 2025 after the U.S. government imposed sweeping tariffs on Canadian goods. Ford defended the decision by stating he would not award contracts to those who “encourage economic attacks” on Canada. While the Premier originally suggested the province might not have to pay anything to exit the deal, the government has since confirmed a settlement was reached.
According to The Canadian Press, Ontario’s payout to Elon Musk’s SpaceX over the scuttled Starlink contract will remain a permanent secret after the two sides entered into a confidential settlement. While the provincial government confirmed the “kill fee” was part of a negotiated deal to end the $100 million agreement, it refused to disclose the exact amount, stating only that the figure was “significantly less than the contract value.” The secrecy has drawn sharp criticism from opposition leaders, who argue that taxpayers are entitled to know the cost of the Premier’s decision to retaliate against U.S. trade policies by tearing up the infrastructure deal.
The fallout has left many remote and Indigenous communities in a digital limbo. These households were expecting high-speed access by June 2025, but they are now forced to wait while the province searches for a new partner. Opposition critics have suggested that the government should have originally partnered with a Canadian firm like Telesat to avoid the political volatility of a foreign contract.
