BEAD could buffer Amazon's big satellite production problem

Amazon's Project Kuiper is behind on manufacturing its satellites and may miss its Federal Communications Commission deadline to get them into orbit, according to Bloomberg. The outlet reported that Project Kuiper has only completed several dozen satellites, a year into production, but is required to have over 1,600 low-Earth orbit satellites in orbit by the summer of 2026. The operator may need to request an extension from the FCC if it is unable to ramp up production. However, Project Kuiper could get financial support from the Broadband Equity Access and Deployment program. In November 2024, Louisiana became the first state to award funding from the BEAD program and earmarked funds for non-fiber providers. At the time, Louisiana had $28.7 million pending for an "alternative technology provider" to cover 2,869 locations at $10,000 per location. While these areas received no interest from fiber or fixed wireless providers, they are expected to be covered by Starlink or Project Kuiper, which were both pre-approved providers for Louisiana's BEAD program.