The list prices of Starlink communications devices have nearly doubled in Ukraine as mobile networks have started failing under Russia's assault on the country's electricity grid.
According to the company's website, Starlink will increase in price to $700 for new Ukrainian consumers. The price went up from $385 earlier this year, according to the data shared by users inside the country.
The consumer cost of the monthly subscription to Starlink dropped from about $100 to $60 on August 24 to reflect local market conditions, and will now rise to $75.
In Poland, where Starlink is used by many Ukrainians to avoid problems with domestic mail delivery, prices have gone up.
Musk did not reply immediately.
The small portable devices, which connect to satellites via a book-sized antenna, have provided internet access to the Ukrainian military and civilians in areas with little to no mobile phone networks.
It is not clear if the prices have changed for the Ukrainian government, which uses a mix of Starlink from different donors.
A person familiar with the situation said that the US Department of Defense was asked to pay $4,500 a month for each terminal intended for Ukranian. The Pentagon has been in contact with the company about Starlink, but it's not clear what they're talking about. The US and Ukraine have identified satellite communications as a critical capability.
Musk responded to a request from a Ukrainian minister by turning on the satellite-based service within the country.
AdvertisementThe Ukrainian military has used Starlink extensively along the frontline, where months of battles have rendered mobile networks unreliable, using huge amounts of high-speed data to communicate with each other and with their bases.
Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said on Tuesday that the Ukrainian government would make their imports tax and duty free.
Starlink is used by civilians in areas taken back from Russian control.
In recent weeks, the mobile networks in big cities such as Kyiv have stopped working.
After the Financial Times reported that the Ukrainian military faced operational problems in October after discovering the devices didn't work in areas recently liberated from Russian control, Musk complained that the cost to deliver Starlink services to Ukraine could be as high as $100 million.
CNN reported in October that the US government was asked to pick up the cost of providing the service to the Ukrainian government and military. It's not clear what additional costs Musk is referring to, since many users pay directly for the terminal and subscription.
Dimko Zhluktenko, a software engineer who runs a charity to raise money for soldiers, said he had purchased as many as 200 Starlinks in the past to send to the front lines.
The price increase has derailed his most recent attempt to raise $50,000 to purchase 100 more.
As a Ukrainian doing it for the military, Zhluktenko will pay whatever amount is required.
Local retailers said demand for Starlink has grown in recent weeks, as a small gray market emerged of people paying as much as $1,125 for immediate delivery of the devices, rather than waiting to source them from Poland or for SpaceX to make the delivery.
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