Canada\u2019s plans to reduce its reliance on Starlink<\/a> are being tied to the development of Telesat Lightspeed<\/a>, but the alternative satellite network is still years away from full service.<\/p>\n Prime Minister Mark Carney said in an interview with the New York Times<\/em> published Wednesday that Canada will move away from Elon Musk\u2019s satellite internet service. \u201cStarlink, we will diversify away from, no question,\u201d Carney said, as part of a wider push to cut Canada\u2019s economic and strategic dependence on the United States (via Tesla North<\/em><\/a>).<\/p>\n Carney suggested Canada could work with European and Korean partners to build enough scale.<\/p>\n U.S. investor MHR Fund Management owns 35.5% of Telesat, while SpaceX is contracted to carry out the 14 Falcon 9 launches<\/a> required to deploy the constellation. Ottawa has committed $1.44 billion in loans and equity to Lightspeed, and a $2.3 billion defence contract<\/a> signed in August added 69 more satellites, bringing the planned network to 225.<\/p>\n Ontario has also previously moved away from Starlink. Doug Ford\u2019s government cancelled its $100 million Starlink deal<\/a> in March 2025 over U.S. tariffs, later reaching a confidential settlement with a \u201ckill fee\u201d the province said was significantly less than the contract value.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, the Ontario Teachers\u2019 Pension Plan invested about $300 million in SpaceX in 2019. That stake was worth US$8.7 billion at June 30<\/a>, a 29-fold gain the Financial Post<\/em> called a \u201csignificant contributor\u201d to the fund\u2019s 9.5% first-half return.<\/p>\n![\"Rooftop](\"https:\/\/cdn.iphoneincanada.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/starlink-2026-v4.jpg\" "\\"starlink")
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