Ford government agrees to fee canceling $100M deal with Elon Musk's Starlink
The now-defunct agreement between Ontario and SpaceX was first signed in November to provide satellite internet to roughly 15,000 homes in the north of the province.
A spokesperson for the Ministry of Energy and Mines confirmed to Global News the deal had ended.
'Our government has cancelled the Starlink contract,' they wrote in an email. 'We are seeking an alternate solution as we continue our efforts to secure long term, stable high-speed internet access across the province.'
Ending the deal meant the province had to pay a fee, although it is unclear how much that was.
A senior government source, speaking on background, told Global News negotiations with SpaceX to settle on the fee had gone well, but still left Ontario on the hook.
Story continues below advertisement
They said the cost of the cancellation was 'not zero,' stressing it was substantially less than the $100 million valuation of the original deal.
SpaceX did not respond to a request for comment in time for publication.
A deal that hinged on Donald Trump
Ontario's $100-million agreement with SpaceX was announced just days after Donald Trump won the U.S. presidential race, with the help of the world's richest man, Elon Musk.
Get daily National news
Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day. Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up
By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy
On Nov. 14, when the Ford government unveiled its agreement with SpaceX, Musk had been a major figure in Trump's campaign and was preparing to take on an even bigger role in his new administration.
The agreement was announced at the same time Ontario was mounting a 'charm offensive' directed at Trump, hoping to convince him to work with the province and not to slap massive tariffs on Canadian goods.
Story continues below advertisement
It didn't work, however, and months later, tariffs were levied on some Canadian products.
When tariffs were unveiled, Ontario Premier Doug Ford announced retaliation, including the fact that he would 'be ripping up' the $100 million agreement with Musk.
'It's done,' Ford said in March. 'We're not going back there, it's done.'
At the time, Musk responded on social media with two words: 'Oh well.'
The Cancelling Starlink Act
Working out how to end the lucrative agreement with Musk's company proved more complicated than simply declaring the plan at a news conference.
According to sources and documents, the government toyed with the idea of introducing legislation to end the agreement.
Story continues below advertisement
A law was considered under a working title, the Starlink Cancellation Act, to end the contract. A senior government source said it would have had the advantage of allowing Ontario to indemnify itself if SpaceX tried to sue it for backing out of the deal.
It could also have provoked the U.S. company to refuse to work with the province in the future, or even cancel other contracts it has in Ontario. Some northern health care facilities, for example, use satellite internet to deliver services.
By negotiating a deal with Starlink, instead of unilaterally cancelling it, the province is able to ensure other agreements aren't touched, and the two parties could work together in the future, sources indicated.
What next for the north?
Cancelling the deal does leave 15,000 homes in northern Ontario which had been promised high-speed internet without it.
Story continues below advertisement
The government has not said which companies it is considering to pick up the hole left by the end of the Starlink agreement or when it plans to sign a new deal.
Ontario NDP Leader Marit Stiles said the situation meant Ontario residents are without internet service, and Musk is making money off a deal he didn't even have to fulfil.
'This should have been done a long time ago and the premier should have secured a proper deal for those in Northern and rural communities who still don't have the reliable internet that they were promised by this government,' she said in a statement.
'Handing over hard-earned tax dollars to Elon Musk's company was never the right approach. Months have passed and we still don't have a plan or even a process that's calling for home-grown solutions.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Toronto Star
15 minutes ago
- Toronto Star
Canadian auto sector hopeful a U.S. trade deal will come with carve-outs
Automotive industry leaders are hoping to see exemptions for vehicles compliant with the current trade deal as Canada and the U.S. continue discussions ahead of the upcoming tariff deadline. Friday marks the deadline in Canada's trade talks with the U.S., as President Donald Trump has threatened to impose 35 per cent tariffs on a wide variety of Canadian goods if the two countries don't reach an agreement before then.
Winnipeg Free Press
15 minutes ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Canadian teen visits Ukraine to support efforts to recover children taken by Russia
OTTAWA – Sixteen-year-old Jaden Braves says he chose to travel to Ukraine and volunteer for a humanitarian aid group operating in a war zone because he thinks young people need to step up when others are suffering. Braves, who is from Toronto and is the founder of the Young Politicians of Canada, was in Kyiv for about two weeks in July. He told The Canadian Press he was there to support the organization Save Ukraine, which organizes rescue missions to return Ukrainian children taken by Russia. 'That's kind of pushed me to come to a war zone for the first time,' he said. 'I think it's about totally humbling yourself and saying that you're prepared to, you know, put yourself at risk for something that you understand is so important to the greater good.' A team of experts at Yale University has estimated that as many as 35,000 Ukrainian children may be held in Russia and its occupied territories. It is feared that many have been taken by Russian forces and sent to military camps or foster care, or have been adopted by Russian families. Braves said that while he was in Ukraine, he met with the Canadian and Austrian ambassadors and other officials to see how countries like Canada and those in the EU can support Ukraine, especially in the wake of U.S. cuts to overseas aid. 'It's just about slowly figuring that out, how can we be successful in ensuring Ukraine wins and ensuring that 30,000 kids that have been wrongfully kidnapped and are experiencing sexual abuse and are experiencing militarization and brainwashing can be brought home,' Braves told The Canadian Press Tuesday from the basement of the InterContinental hotel in Kyiv during an air raid alert. Braves said he also attended an anticorruption protest in Kyiv and met with young people who have been rescued by Save Ukraine to hear their stories. He said he spoke to people from England and New Zealand who are in the country doing humanitarian work. 'We've definitely worked on figuring out where there's opportunity to collaborate,' he said. The Government of Canada website says Canada has committed $6.5 billion in military assistance to Ukraine since the beginning of 2022. It also says Canada has allocated more than $585 million in development assistance and $372.2 million in humanitarian assistance to Ukraine and neighbouring countries. Braves said he's been working to figure out how Canada can effectively roll out that support for Ukraine. He said that before heading to Kyiv, he attended various conferences in other European countries for about a month, including the UN Ocean Summit in Nice and the GLOBSEC Forum in Prague. He said he also visited Cambridge, U.K., to work on data projects and Georgia to deliver lectures and host an English leadership camp. Braves said his journey to Kyiv was long and included a 17-hour train ride from Poland. He said that while he stayed in an apartment most of the time in Kyiv, he spent two nights in an underground metro station filled with civilians sheltering from Russian airstrikes. Braves said being in Kyiv allowed him to learn about the 'incredibly vibrant' Ukrainian culture and the country's strength. 'I've witnessed a story of resilience when a country continues to be under fire that just decides they will not take missiles as an excuse to move out of the land that they call home,' he said. 'I understand that democracy and Western civilization has been the best representation of successful society as we know it, and that must be preserved, and that's compelled me sufficiently to figure out how I can help.' Braves said he was inspired to get involved when participating in the NATO summit in Washington in 2024 as a representative of NATO Canada. 'I was kind of enlightened to a global movement to protect the front lines of democracy,' he said. 'That NATO summit really woke me up to the need to commit to Ukraine and I saw the efforts that Canada has been putting in.' Braves said that Canada is co-chair of the International Coalition for the Return of Ukrainian Children and that, as a Canadian, he also felt responsible for that work. Braves said he's working on forming a coalition of young Canadians to press for the return of Ukrainians taken by Russia. He said he has been in touch with Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand's office to discuss how Canada can help bring those children home. 'I look forward to coming back to Canada and continuing to ensure Canada can collaborate further with Ukraine,' Braves said. 'We as young people need to go support other young people that are in very dire situations like other places in the world where we're seeing humanitarian crises. This is certainly one of them.' This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 31, 2025.
Winnipeg Free Press
15 minutes ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Newfoundlanders who fled cod moratorium are returning — and creating a housing crunch
NEW-WES-VALLEY – The affordable housing complex Mike Tiller is hoping for is unlike anything else in his community. The sleek, modular buildings with sloping roofs and wide windows pose a sharp contrast to the brightly-coloured clapboard houses dotting the shores in New-Wes-Valley, a small fishing community along the northern end of Newfoundland's Bonavista Bay. But the homes would solve a problem Tiller never thought he'd face as mayor of the rural Newfoundland town: people are moving there, rather than moving away. And they need somewhere to live. 'It's a huge change,' Tiller said in a recent interview, shaking his head outside the town hall. 'You can't have people coming here looking for homes and not have anything for them to live in or you're never going to grow your town … And we can't afford any more major decreases in population.' That's why the town paid about $140,000 for Biosis, a Danish architecture firm with experience building on rocky landscapes, to design a 17-unit affordable housing complex that will sit on oceanfront land. The municipality purchased the land, making use of a federal grant. The town is also ready to foot the bill for road and sewer connections. Council will publish a request for proposals from interested developers in the coming days, Tiller said. 'The need is there, the desire is there,' he said. 'We just need somebody to listen.' Rural communities across Newfoundland and Labrador have been slowly emptying out since 1992, when the federal government brought the lucrative northern cod fishery to a halt as the fish stocks collapsed. The move resulted in one of the largest mass layoffs in Canadian history: businesses closed, jobs dried up and young people began to move away, leaving behind their aging parents and grandparents. The demographics in New-Wes-Valley are typical in rural Newfoundland: the town is home to some 2,050 people, more than a third of whom are 65 or older, according to the latest census. The average age there is 52. But things are shifting. People are moving to New-Wes-Valley, many of whom are coming back home after working in St. John's or other provinces. As a result, the increased demand is driving up housing prices and property taxes. Ten years ago, homes in New-Wes-Valley regularly sold for $30,000, said Cheryl Smith, a town councillor and real estate agent. Now they can sell for more than $100,000. That's a lot for many locals, but still attractive for people in other parts of Canada, Smith said. Seniors on fixed incomes who want to move into smaller homes have few options. They can't afford the new housing costs, nor can they afford the municipal tax hikes, Tiller said. Some have moved away to Gander, N.L., a much larger centre with more housing options. He wants them to be able to stay. Sarah Norris left New-Wes-Valley for Alberta on Christmas Day in 2010, about two years after graduating high school — it was a cheap flight, she explained in a recent interview. She moved back home in March 2022, wanting a fresh start. She now owns and operates the Salt & Sail café and tavern, where diners in bright booths look out over low-sloping rocks leading into the ocean. The biggest change she sees in her community since she returned is the number of young families. 'Our kindergarten class this year needed two teachers because it was so large, I think it was 24 students. That is huge for our area,' she said. 'I think people are just really thirsty for peace, honestly, just tranquility. And that's what you'll get here.' Norris said she knows people in their 90s who are still living in large saltbox-style homes where they raised their families. There's just nowhere else for them to live, she said. 'They're, like, 95 and they just move their beds downstairs,' Norris said. If they could find a smaller place, they could sell their bigger house to a young family like hers, she added. About 40 minutes south of New-Wes-valley, the same scenario is playing out in Centreville-Wareham-Trinity with one major difference: the town already has affordable housing. And it's full. Mayor Ivan Pickett walked down a road lined with modern-looking duplexes that rent for about $650 a month. Some had basketball nets and bikes in the front yard. Monday Mornings The latest local business news and a lookahead to the coming week. A handful were built about a decade ago, when the town got some funding to build affordable homes. The majority were built later, by a private developer, Pickett said. The town needs about 20 more. 'At least,' the mayor said. '20 units would be gobbled up pretty quickly.' Tiller doesn't believe New-Wes-Valley's population is going to stop declining — there still aren't enough young people to balance the number of older residents. But he hopes to keep the population higher than 2,000 for as long as he can — and he believes the affordable housing complex will help. 'We want to keep our seniors here. We also want to attract newcomers to the area,' Tiller said. 'We are doing whatever we can to give people options so that they don't leave our town.' This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 31, 2025.
