The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced on Friday that it has approved the application from Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX) to deploy an additional 7,500 second-generation Starlink satellites, a move that will help the company further expand its global internet service business.

The FCC stated that SpaceX, led by Elon Musk, is now authorized to operate an extra 7,500 Gen2 Starlink satellites, which will bring its total number of satellites in orbit globally to 15,000. The commission also approved technical upgrades for the satellites and permitted their operation across five frequency bands; furthermore, it waived previous rules that restricted overlapping satellite signal coverage, thereby removing constraints on increasing network capacity.

The agency noted that the additional satellites will provide direct satellite-to-cellular services for regions outside the United States and enhance network coverage capabilities within the U.S., not only supporting next-generation mobile communication services but also enabling internet speeds of up to 1 gigabit per second.