Internet access (Ministry of Digital Affairs programme)

Internet access (Russian market)

Main article: Internet access (Russian market)

Program to eliminate digital inequality in Russia

Main article: Program to eliminate digital inequality in Russia

2022: 30.5 billion rubles are allocated from the budget for satellite Internet in Russia

On January 25, 2022, Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Chernyshenko announced that about 30.5 billion rubles were allocated from the National Welfare Fund (NWF) for a project to provide citizens and enterprises with satellite Internet.

We are talking about the federal project "Providing Internet access through the development of satellite communications" ("Internet access"), which is planned to be included in the national program "Digital Economy." According to Interfax, citing the passport of this project, by the end of 2024 a total of 63.86 billion rubles may be required for its implementation, including 33.38 billion rubles from the federal budget and 30.48 billion rubles from extrabudgetary sources.

30.5 billion rubles are allocated from the budget for satellite Internet in Russia

As a result, it is planned until 2024 to provide coverage of the territories of the Arctic zone and the Far East with satellite communications, and by 2030 - to provide access to the Internet for citizens in hard-to-reach areas.

According to the project passport, it will be implemented by FSUE Space Communications (GPKS). The project involves the creation by 2024 and the launch in 2025 of one satellite of communication and broadcasting in the geostationary orbit "Express" and 4 satellites of communication and broadcasting in highly elliptical orbits "Express-RV." In addition, it is planned to produce another 8 Express satellites. As follows from the document, the GPKS is planned to provide a subsidy for Express-RV satellites.

The goal of the Internet Access initiative is to create satellite communications to provide citizens with broadband access to the Internet in remote and inaccessible settlements of the country, Dmitry Chernyshenko told the agency.

By January 2022, the passport of the federal project "Internet Access" was approved by the Presidium of the Right Commission for Digital Development, chaired by Dmitry Chernyshenko.^[1]

2021: Mishustin allocated 60.8 billion rubles for cheap satellite Internet in villages

On July 21, 2021, the head of the Government of the RFMihail Mishustin approved the allocation of 60.8 billion rubles from the National Welfare Fund (NWF) for the implementation of the Internet Access program, which is being developed by the Ministry of Digital Development, Communications and Mass Communications of the Russian Federation. It consists in the creation of a satellite constellation of four spacecraft that will provide cheap Internet in separated and inaccessible regions, including the northern regions, the Arctic coast and the Northern Sea Route.

This was reported by Kommersant, citing a source in the Government of the Russian Federation and a representative of the Ministry of Digital Affairs. The Ministry of Finance confirmed to the publication that additional funding will be allocated "to provide a number of self-supporting infrastructure projects, including for Internet Access.

Mikhail Mishustin allocated 60.8 billion rubles for cheap satellite Internet in villages

The office of Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Chernyshenko clarified to the newspaper that it is planned to create a satellite constellation by 2028. They did not report tariffs there, adding that the quality and accessibility of the Internet for citizens will be a priority.

Earlier it was reported that the implementation of the project "Access to the Internet" will cost 151 billion rubles. A Kommersant source in the telecommunications industry called this amount too low. As an example, the interlocutor cited the cost of launching the Starlink satellite constellation, which amounted to $3 billion (about 225 billion rubles). And this does not take into account the costs of production, setup, earth stations and others. Experts and market participants interviewed by the publication believe that the new project is more focused on providing communication to state institutions, rather than the population.

According to Sergei Pekhterev, Director General of AltegroSkySergey Pekhterev, Internet Access can work on Express-RV satellites (their design began in 2010 with FSUE Space Communications) or Skif^[2]

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