Costs for the Russian analogue of OneWeb increased by 230 billion rubles

The development of the Russian analogue of the OneWeb global satellite communication system will cost 233 billion rubles more than planned, RBC reports , citing a source in Roscosmos.

According to updated data, the cost of the domestic system project called “Ether” has increased to 533 billion – instead of the three hundred announced earlier. Roscosmos did not specify why the price of the project almost doubled.

In 2015, OneWeb announced plans to create a network of 650 satellites that would provide broadband Internet access to the entire planet.

The FSB opposed the project, seeing it as a threat to national security due to the deployment of the American satellite communications system over Russian territory. In turn, the Russian government has obliged foreign satellite operators, if they want to work in Russia, to obtain a special conclusion from the FSB.

In May 2018, Roscosmos announced its readiness to implement its project, which, according to the company’s plans, should become a competitor to One Web.