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Ontario has officially canceled its $100 million contract with Elon Musk's Starlink, citing US tariffs on Canadian imports as the driving force behind the decision.

Premier Doug Ford made the announcement on Tuesday, stating, "We're ripping up Ontario's contract with Starlink. It's done. It's gone. We won't award contracts to people who enable and encourage economic attacks on our province and our country."

This marks the second time Ford has threatened to cancel the contract. In February, he made a similar statement when tariffs appeared imminent, but the decision was delayed when the Trump administration pushed back the tariff start date.

However, with tariffs now set to take effect on April 2, Ontario has moved forward with the cancellation.

The agreement, signed in November, was designed to bring high-speed internet to 15,000 rural homes and businesses in northern Ontario, Unilad said.

With Starlink's exit, it remains unclear how affected residents will access reliable internet service.

Telestat, a Canadian satellite communications provider, is currently developing its Lightspeed service. However, the service is not projected to be fully operational for several more years.

Elon Musk, CEO of SpaceX, which owns Starlink, briefly responded to the initial news of the cancellation with a succinct remark, stating, "Oh well," on the social media platform X.

Neither Starlink nor SpaceX has issued a public comment on this latest decision.

Ontario's Starlink Ban Sparks Search for Alternative Satellite Providers

According to Cnet, Micah Walter-Range, president of space consulting firm Caelus Partners, said the move could create opportunities for other satellite providers but is unlikely to harm Starlink's global business.

"In many places, Starlink is simply the best option available, even if customers dislike Musk or the Trump administration. Recent events do create incentives for governments and other customers to seek alternatives for the long term."

Ontario has taken a strong position against Starlink, but individual Canadian customers may still be able to use the service unless the federal government implements a nationwide ban.

According to Walter-Range, as long as the Canadian government does not revoke Starlink's authorization to transmit signals within Canada, customers who purchase directly from Starlink should not be impacted.

However, those who access the service through government-subsidized programs that rely on Starlink could be switched to alternative providers or, in some cases, might lose access entirely.

Ford's decision is part of a broader pushback against US trade policies. In addition to canceling the Starlink deal, Ontario has announced it will stop purchasing US-made liquor and is considering surcharges on electricity exports to US states.

Ford has warned that Ontario is prepared to "escalate using every tool in our tool kit" if the trade dispute continues.