Nigeria to sanction Elon Musk's Starlink for unauthorized price hike

Nigeria began a process to sanction Starlink Inc. after the satellite-internet service owned by billionaire Elon Musk increased its prices without approval from the regulator.

SpaceX’s Starlink unit recently nearly doubled its monthly subscription rate to 75,000 naira ($46) from 38,000 naira citing “excessive inflation,” while there was a 34% hike in equipment charges to 590,000 naira. Nigerian law requires telecommunication license holders to obtain approval from officials before they raise tariffs or charges.

The regulator said in a statement late Tuesday that it has “commenced pre-enforcement action on the licensee” since Oct. 3, following Starlink’s decision to hike prices without approval.

While the US company did file a request, it jumped the gun by announcing price changes before the Nigerian Communications Commission had shared its decision, the NCC said.

“The decision by Starlink to unilaterally review its subscription packages upwards did not receive the approval” of the regulator, it said.

In response to a request for comment, Starlink shared a link to an Oct. 1 statement on X by Musk stating “Starlink prices must roughly match the rate of inflation in any given country.” The annual rate of inflation in Nigeria was near a three-decade high of 32.2% in August.

The NCC hasn’t allowed any tariff increases by mobile phone operators for several years and in 2022 ordered MTN Nigeria Communications Plc, the nation’s operator, and Airtel Africa Plc to reverse a 10% price increase.