NBN Co and Project Kuiper bring LEO satellite broadband to Aust

NBN Co and Amazon this week announced an agreement to deliver high-speed, wholesale fixed broadband to customers in regional, rural and remote Australia via Project Kuiper’s low-Earth-orbit (LEO) satellite technology — a move that is set to improve public safety, provide resilience during natural disasters and benefit quality of life for those in regional and remote communities, according to Minister for Communications Anika Wells.

Project Kuiper is Amazon’s satellite broadband business that seeks to provide fast, reliable internet to unserved and underserved communities worldwide. When the service launches in Australia in mid-2026, NBN Co plans to offer wholesale residential-grade fixed LEO satellite broadband services to more than 300,000 premises within its existing satellite footprint via participating retail service providers (RSPs).

“We’ve designed Project Kuiper to be the most advanced satellite system ever built,” said Rajeev Badyal, Vice President of Technology at Project Kuiper.

“We’re proud to be working with NBN to bring Kuiper to even more customers and communities across Australia and look forward to creating new opportunities for hundreds of thousands of people in rural and remote parts of the country.”

Project Kuiper’s network will eventually comprise a constellation of more than 3200 satellites in LEO — connected to each other by high-speed optical links that will create a mesh network in space — linked to a global network of antennas, fibre and internet connection points on the ground. Unlike traditional geostationary satellites that orbit approximately 36,000 km above Earth, Project Kuiper’s satellites orbit much closer to our planet at 600 km. This proximity dramatically reduces latency — the time it takes for data to travel between a user and the internet — resulting in a faster online experience.

To date, Project Kuiper has successfully deployed 78 satellites across three launches, with plans for 80+ additional rocket launches to complete the constellation. When fully deployed, the network should reach virtually any location on the planet — from arctic regions to the most remote parts of Australia — providing significant improvements to the quality and reliability of broadband for regional and remote communities.

“Australia’s vast geography presents unique connectivity challenges that traditional infrastructure often can’t overcome,” said Joe Lathan, Amazon Project Kuiper, Country Manager, Australia and New Zealand. “This partnership with NBN Co represents our commitment to solving these challenges through innovation and collaboration. Beyond just connecting devices, we’re focused on the human impact — helping small businesses reach global markets, ensuring students have the same educational resources as their city counterparts, and keeping families connected during emergencies.”

NBN Co CEO Ellie Sweeney said Australians deserve to have access to fast, effective broadband regardless of whether they live in a major city, on the outskirts of a country town or miles from their nearest neighbour, and that’s what the nbn was set up to deliver. She noted that the new agreement will complement NBN Co’s other major network upgrades, which have involved “the rollout of full fibre services across much of our fixed line network and the deployment of the latest 5G millimetre-wave technology to improve the speed and capacity of our fixed wireless network”.

NBN Co will continue to maintain and operate its two geostationary Sky Muster satellites until it transitions to Project Kuiper’s satellite network, to help enable continuity for customers in parts of regional, rural and remote Australia that are reliant on satellite telecommunications. The Sky Muster satellites are expected to remain viable and operational until approximately 2032, so the company is currently exploring its options regarding these assets once the transition is complete.

“Transitioning from two geostationary satellites to a constellation of low-Earth-orbit satellites will help to ensure the nbn network is future-ready and delivers the best possible broadband experience to customers living and working in parts of regional, rural and remote Australia,” Sweeney said.

“This new LEO service will eventually replace our geostationary satellites, and we are committed to working with regional communities to ensure we provide continuity of service and make the transition as smooth and seamless as possible.”

Image courtesy Amazon.