A Starlink ground station is being planned in Christchurch, New Zealand.

“A SpaceX Starlink satellite ground station may be coming soon to Springs Road, right here in Hornby!” local political candidate Cody Cooper said on Facebook recently. “What it means for Canterbury is faster and more reliable Internet in places that still can’t get fiber today. These sites need a reliable power supply, ultra-fast Internet, and clear views of the sky – all things Hornby can offer.”

Site plans shared suggest 40 gateway antennas and one head-end rack are to be developed.

Local news outlet Chris Lynch Media notes the site will be along Springs Road in the Christchurch suburb, in an industrial zone. The site has reportedly previously been used as a quarry, landfill, and asphalt yard.

Starlink has dozens of ground station sites worldwide and continues to build out new ones. The company recently filed for permission for ground station deployments in County Mayo, Ireland; Tampa, Florida; and Leuk, Switzerland.

Starlink services are live in New Zealand, and the company offers direct-to-cell services in partnership with One New Zealand. The company already operates or is planning several ground station sites in the country around Cromwell, Puwera, Te Hana, Hinds, Awarua, and Clevedon.

Eutelsat to place OneWeb ground station on Marshall Islands

In other news, Eutelsat is to place a new ground station on the Marshall Islands to serve its OneWeb fleet.

Last week, the Marshall Islands National Telecommunications Authority (MiNTA) signed a licensing agreement with Eutelsat to operate a satellite network portal (SNP) on the island nation.

The agreement is for the establishment and operation of an SNP in the Marshall Islands, as part of the ground network supporting Eutelsat’s OneWeb Low Earth Orbit (LEO) constellation. The facility is expected to be operational by mid-2026.

Details of the location weren’t shared, but posted images suggest the site is in Laura on Majuro Atoll.

Dr. Yukiko Muller, president and CEO of NTA, said: “This agreement marks a historic milestone for the Marshall Islands. By hosting one of Eutelsat OneWeb’s Satellite Network Portals, our nation will contribute to the Pacific’s digital future and play a central role in completing a truly global network of advanced communications infrastructure."

Fabio Mando, chief operations officer of Eutelsat, added: “The Marshall Islands SNP will be the final piece completing Eutelsat OneWeb’s global ground network. By mid-2026, our constellation will achieve global reach, enabling us to deliver resilient, secure, and high-performance satellite connectivity to governments, businesses, and communities everywhere.”

The Marshall Islands, officially the Republic of the Marshall Islands, is an island country north of the equator in the Micronesia region of the Northwestern Pacific Ocean.

Currently, the Marshall Islands are only served by the HANTRU1 Cable System linking two of the nation’s islands to Guam. That system launched in 2010.

Intelsat is a long-time provider of connectivity services to the islands. Starlink services are available in Majuro, Ebeye, and Kwajalein. Kwajalein hosts a satellite ground station site.

As part of a new fiber-to-the-home project, MiNTA recently announced it is planning to build 16 Central Offices (COs) – 11 on Majuro and 5 on Ebeye – as well as a new core data center. Bids are now open.

OneWeb has dozens of ground station sites live globally to serve its LEO fleet. At the same time, Eutelsat has a large portfolio of its own ground stations for its Geostationary fleet. Eutelsat is set to carve out its ground station infrastructure into a separate company after signing a $831m sale-leaseback deal with EQT late last year.

Wisekey launches ground station in Switzerland

Cybersecurity company Wisekey has deployed a new ground station in Switzerland.

The firm’s WiseSat AG subsidiary, which focuses on secure satellite communication, specifically for IoT applications, has installed its third ground station, located near Ecublens, in the Lausanne region of Switzerland.

This new antenna will serve as a control base for the management and direction of IoT satellites.

WiseSat has launched more than 20 picosatellites to date. The company has existing ground station infrastructure in La Línea de la Concepción, Spain.

WiseSat recently signed a partnership with Astrocast to gain access to the latter’s IoT satellite fleet.