Elon Musk made his first appearance on the Indonesian island of Bali on May 19 in preparation for the anticipated establish of SpaceX’s Starlink internet service, which the Indonesian government hopes may increase internet access and access to medical services in remote areas of the sprawling island.
According to a blog on his Instagram page, Chief Investment Minister Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan said the two may discuss some important collaborations, including the opening of Starlink, as he welcomed Musk’s entrance by private jet at Bali’s airport on Sunday morning.
People in remote areas would be able to access the same rapid internet as those in urban areas, according to him, thanks to equal internet access in Southeast Asia’s largest economy, which has more than 270 million residents living in three time zones.
Musk, the billionaire head of SpaceX and Tesla, may start Starlink with Indonesian President Joko Widodo at a community wellness center in Denpasar, the capital of Bali, on Sunday afternoon, he said.
Communications Minister Budi Arie Setiadi reported to Reuters last week that SpaceX’s dish product has already received a force to run in Southeast Asia’s largest economy.
The minister claimed in an interview that Starlink had been given the go-ahead to provide networks and that it had been granted a very small aperture terminal (VSAT ) permit to operate as an internet service provider for retail customers.
Indonesia will be the second country in Southeast Asia where Starlink does work. Malaysia last year granted the company a permit to offer internet services, and a Philippine-based company signed a contract with SpaceX in 2022.
Starlink is also used heavily in Ukraine, where it is employed by the military, institutions, businesses and help companies.
The nation even urged SpaceX to take action this February to stop Russia from using its Starlink stations for communications in areas that Moscow’s troops have occupied.