When Starlink could launch in South Africa

South Africans will have to wait a long time before the government implements new regulations allowing equity equivalents so that players like Starlink can launch in the country.

Dominic Cull, the owner of Ellipsis regulatory solutions, told MyBroadband the government would need 12 to 18 months to finalise the relevant amendments. However, he cautioned that litigation could delay it.

The first step is for communications minister Solly Malatsi to finalise his draft policy direction before he can submit a final policy direction to the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (Icasa).

“The deadline for comments is next week, and thereafter the Minister will need to consider the submissions made, consult with government, and publish a final policy direction to Icasa,” said Cull.

“Estimate for this is six to nine months, but with the application of some political will, it could be done in four to six months.”

Once Malatsi publishes the final policy direction, the focus will shift to the communications regulator. Icasa will have to consider what Malatsi is asking it to do and decide whether to proceed.

“Assuming Icasa agrees to open up a process to amend its regulatory framework on control, ownership, and transformation, then it will need to set up its internal structures and decide on a process to follow,” said Cull.

Then it can launch the process and publish draft regulations for comment. Icasa will also need to host public hearings before finalising the amendments.

“The estimate for this is 12 to 18 months. There is a lot of scope for this process to be delayed by litigation,” said Cull.

“At this stage, Icasa would then have amended regulations that allow for an applicant for an individual licence to either have 30% equity ownership by historically disadvantaged groups or an EEIP agreement.”

Cull said SpaceX appears to be running processes in parallel to save time. “They’ve already approached the Department of Trade, Industry, and Competition with an initial offer on the EEIP agreement,” he said.

“Even if they obtain this in the interim, they will still need to wait for Icasa to finish its process before they can apply for a licence or the transfer of a licence.”

Cull also said SpaceX had excellent local representation advising it on the most efficient way to achieve its desired outcome.

“If the stars align in their favour, they could be targeting 12 to 15 months as their most optimistic timeline,” he adds.

R500-million Starlink deal

Equity equivalent investment programmes (EEIPs) allow an alternative path for multinationals to comply with South Africa’s transformation laws.

In the telecom sector, licences to operate physical networks or offer communications services nationally require 30% ownership by historically disadvantaged groups. EEIPs would provide an alternative for that.

SpaceX has already approached the Department of Trade, Industry, and Competition regarding a potential investment in the South African economy through Starlink.

The company has committed to investing R500 million to provide free broadband Internet to schools in South Africa — a proposal to gain local approval for Starlink.

The proposed investment was announced in an email sent to South Africans interested in the satellite Internet service.

It said the addition of EEIPs in South Africa’s ICT sector would allow it to expand broadband connectivity across the country, including underserved townships, farms, communities, and rural schools.

If it obtains local approval, SpaceX will roll out Starlink Internet to 5,000 schools nationwide, providing free high-speed Internet connectivity to more than two million children in South Africa.

Starlink Market Access senior director Ryan D. Goodnight said the company wants to help solve the lack of access to education resources in rural South Africa.

“Starlink proposes to provide over 5,000 rural schools with fully funded Starlink kits and service in addition to facilitating the installation support alongside local South African companies,” he said.

He added that this would positively impact the lives of millions of schoolchildren and assist the government in achieving its SA Connect objectives.