Strengthening Telecommunications Against Natural Disasters Grant Announced.
Strengthening Telecommunications Against Natural Disasters – A one-off grant under the Strengthening Telecommunications Against Natural Disasters (STAND) program to fund the extension of Sky Muster satellite installations has been announced by the Australian Federal Government.
The grant, which closes on August 15 2025 allows NBN Co to expand coverage to at least 500 additional regional and remote sites across Australia and its islands, strengthening broadband resilience in communities that are remote and/or are vulnerable to isolation after natural disasters.
The funding will enable new end-user satellite broadband installations in areas where existing NBN services are either unavailable or insufficiently reliable. The goal is to improve telecommunications infrastructure in locations where geographic isolation or environmental conditions make the deployment of fixed-line or mobile networks impractical.
Sky Muster broadband operates via 2 SSL-built LS-1300 geostationary satellites—Sky Muster I and II—launched aboard Ariane 5 rockets in 2015 and 2016. Positioned at 140 degrees East and 145 degrees East respectively, the satellites orbit 35,786km above the equator, providing broadband coverage to mainland Australia, Tasmania, and remote islands including Norfolk, Lord Howe, Christmas, Cocos (Keeling), and Macquarie.
Each satellite transmits using 101 Ka-band spot beams, a design that maximises bandwidth efficiency by focusing capacity on populated or high-demand areas. The current combined network throughput is approximately 135Gbps, with upgrades planned to increase this to 185Gbps.
Sky Muster broadband offers standard download speeds of up to 25Mbps and upload speeds of up to 5Mbps. The Sky Muster Plus Premium tier supports burst speeds of up to 100Mbps, although latency remains a limitation due to the geostationary distance, with round-trip delays of up to 664ms.
Installations typically involve roof or wall-mounted dishes connected by cable to an internal modem. NBN Co manages standard installation and maintenance through accredited technicians, with no additional installation cost to service providers for eligible locations.
The STAND expansion will empower security installers and integrators with telecommunications resources to support security and automation solutions in remote locations, as well as helping to keep them online and delivering situational awareness during natural disasters.
You can read more about this grant here and find more SEN news here.
“Strengthening Telecommunications Against Natural Disasters Grant Announced.”
