A statement from Vietnam's Ministry of Science and Technology, following a meeting this week between a minister and a Project Kuiper representative, indicates that Amazon is aiming to deploy its Kuiper satellite services in Vietnam.
The meeting, held in Hanoi, was between Deputy Minister Pham Duc Long and Gonzalo de Dios, Head of Global Licensing and Project Kuiper at Amazon.
Reuters says that Amazon has, according to the ministry, pledged to invest US$570 million by 2030 to build infrastructure, including up to six ground stations and terminal manufacturing in the northern province of Bac Ninh through local partnerships.
Amazon has also established a local business called Amazon Kuiper Vietnam, based in Ho Chi Minh City, and has submitted an application for low Earth orbit satellite services. The ministry says the Kuiper initiative aims to bring broadband internet to remote regions and islands that might otherwise be underserved.
The company's pilot programme application is reportedly seeking approval for a five-year rollout to serve consumer, business, and government subscribers, though Amazon itself does not seem to have confirmed this. Rival Starlink has already been permitted to operate a similar scheme in Vietnam over a five-year period.
The Kuiper project appear to be gaining some traction after a slow start. In late April we reported that the first 27 satellites had finally been launched into space from Florida after bad weather meant an initial launch attempt had been abandoned. June saw the launch of a second batch of operational broadband satellites for the Project Kuiper constellation.
