Location of four Starlink ground stations in Vietnam

According to the license issued by the Radio Frequency Department – Ministry of Science and Technology, Starlink Services Vietnam company is allowed to use frequencies and place radio equipment for fixed satellite services in Lien Chieu 2 ward (Da Nang), Binh Nguyen commune (Phu Tho), Tang Nhon Phu ward and Tan Thuan ward (HCMC).

The gateway station is where radio equipment is located, connecting satellites to the ground network infrastructure, and transferring data. To access the Internet, the user’s dish (antenna) connects to a satellite, which then sends a signal to the nearest station. According to Starlink InsiderBy the end of 2025, the network will have 150 gateways in operation globally, 13 stations under construction and 19 stations awaiting approval.

Previously, on the evening of February 18 in Washington DC (USA), the Ministry of Science and Technology also awarded the License to provide telecommunications services with network infrastructure to the representative of Starlink Services Vietnam. The activity is within the framework of the signing and awarding ceremony of contracts and cooperation agreements in key fields such as science and technology, digital transformation, aviation and healthcare between representatives of the two countries.

According to the Ministry, licensing represents a controlled approach in the management and deployment of new radio information technologies, ensuring harmony between national frequency resource management requirements and the goal of promoting modern, synchronous and sustainable digital infrastructure development.

The low-orbit satellite Internet system is expected to supplement existing telecommunications infrastructure, enhancing connectivity, especially in areas where it is difficult to deploy ground transmission infrastructure or need to increase redundancy. This is one of the solutions to improve digital infrastructure capacity, meeting the needs of digital economic development, digital society and national digital transformation.

Starlink is a satellite Internet service developed by SpaceX, owned by billionaire Elon Musk, with the goal of providing broadband connection coverage to hard-to-reach areas. By the end of 2025, SpaceX has launched more than 10,000 satellites, although not all are operational. The business currently provides services in 150 countries and territories.

Starlink satellites operate in low orbit, 550 km above the ground, while traditional satellite Internet uses geostationary satellites at an altitude of more than 35,000 km. Shorter distances reduce data transmission time, resulting in lower latency compared to traditional satellite Internet service.

Mr. Doan Quang Hoan, Vice President of the Vietnam Radio and Electronics Association, former Director of the Radio Frequency Department, assessed that Starlink placing a ground station in the country will bring many benefits. Technically, the station shortens the communication distance between the user and the data source, because the signal does not have to go around a station located abroad and then return home. “This helps reduce communication latency and increase on-site computing capacity. The more stations, the more it helps reduce latency,” Mr. Hoan said.

Associate Professor. Dr. Nguyen Tien Ban, Head of Telecommunications Department 1 – Posts and Telecommunications Institute of Technology, commented: “The speed and latency of Internet services when locating stations in Vietnam are always better than those located in other countries such as Indonesia or Singapore.” In addition, the stations will have the role of converting Starlink signals to support terminal users in different regions of the world.

According to the Government’s decision in March 2025, to deploy telecommunications services using low-orbit satellite technology, SpaceX must place a gateway station on Vietnamese territory, ensuring that all traffic generated by satellite subscribers on Vietnamese territory passes through these stations and connects to the domestic public telecommunications network.

By April 2025, Starlink received a pilot license from Deputy Prime Minister Ho Duc Phoc, becoming the first foreign enterprise that Vietnam agreed to pilot satellite Internet services. Starlink is deployed with 4 gateway stations with a maximum of 600,000 terminals.