The most common objection we hear from Singapore fleet managers considering a Starlink switch is not price and not speed — it is the SLA. Traditional VSAT contracts offer contractual availability commitments that charterers and financiers rely on. Starlink Maritime alone does not match those SLAs. So the assumption is: keep VSAT, or accept the risk. Wrong assumption. This post covers how to cut your VSAT bill by 60% or more while keeping a genuine SLA in place.
The old and the new
Old design: single VSAT service per vessel. Ku or Ka-band, monthly airtime SGD 4,000-7,000, hardware SGD 45,000-80,000, formal SLA baked into the contract.
New design (bonded LEO): Starlink Maritime (bandwidth workhorse) + OneWeb Maritime (SLA layer) bonded on a Peplink B One. Monthly SGD 1,200-1,500, hardware SGD 10,000-13,000, SLA underwritten by OneWeb.
Same or better real-world performance. Genuine SLA. 60-80% cost reduction.
Why the SLA still holds
OneWeb Maritime contracts include committed availability figures (typically 99.5%+) with service credits for missed targets. This satisfies most charterer and financier requirements. When Starlink is up (which is most of the time), it carries the bulk of the traffic — vessel gets fast, cheap connectivity. When Starlink degrades, OneWeb handles priority traffic. The SLA is measured on OneWeb throughput and availability, not on the combined performance.
The economics laid out
| Line item | VSAT single (SGD/mo) | Bonded LEO (SGD/mo) |
|---|---|---|
| Primary broadband service | 4,500-6,000 (Ku-band) | 320 (Starlink Local Priority) |
| SLA layer | Bundled with above | 800-1,200 (OneWeb Maritime) |
| Router/mgmt hardware amortised | 150-250 | 40 (Peplink) |
| Antenna maintenance amortised | 150 | 0 |
| Total per month | 4,800-6,400 | 1,160-1,560 |
Roughly a 75% monthly cost reduction per vessel. On a 6-vessel fleet that is SGD 220,000-290,000/year saved.
Migration path — 6 weeks to switch without downtime
- Week 1-2 — Notify VSAT provider of non-renewal (contract permitting). Order Starlink, OneWeb, and Peplink from Singapore stock. Notify charterer where required.
- Week 3 — Install Starlink + OneWeb + Peplink on the vessel during a port call (6 hours). Existing VSAT stays connected and active.
- Week 4-5 — Both systems run parallel. Peplink routes traffic across all three WANs. Measure LEO performance, tune configuration, gain confidence.
- Week 6 — Cut VSAT airtime to minimum plan (safety fallback) or terminate entirely. Vessel operates on bonded LEO primary + OneWeb SLA.
Zero downtime because both systems overlap during weeks 3-5.
Contractual pieces to line up
- Charterer notification — some charter contracts name VSAT specifically. Notify in advance and get written acceptance of LEO alternative. Most charterers now accept bonded LEO as equivalent.
- Financing covenants — some vessel loans have comms uptime covenants. Check the wording — most are met by the OneWeb SLA layer.
- Insurance — no impact on hull cover. Confirm P&I is comfortable, most are.
- MPA and flag state — no notification required unless the vessel is part of a specific MPA program that mandates GMDSS or other regulated comms (in which case, GMDSS equipment stays independent of this discussion).
Common misconceptions we hear
“Starlink outages will kill the SLA” — the SLA measurement is on OneWeb, not Starlink. Starlink outages just mean OneWeb briefly carries all traffic — availability stays 100%.
“Peplink is a single point of failure” — the Peplink B One has an internal 4G/5G modem as a third WAN option. If ever the Peplink itself fails, the vessel has GMDSS voice via Iridium/Inmarsat as a separate independent system.
“Charterers won’t accept it” — this used to be true in 2023. In 2026, most SG charterers now specifically prefer LEO because it improves vessel connectivity for their own operational data.
What we handle for Singapore clients
Envisiondata runs the full VSAT-to-bonded-LEO migration for Singapore fleet managers. Hardware supply, install engineering, charterer paperwork templates, InControl 2 configuration, and 30-day post-cutover support. Sales at Envisiondata Pte Ltd — sales@envisiondatasg.com — or WhatsApp Steve directly on +65 9088 4899.
Related reading
Get a migration quote
Send the fleet list — vessel type, current VSAT provider and contract renewal date, and typical operating area. We will build a per-vessel migration plan with SGD savings, timeline, and charterer notification templates. Sales at Envisiondata Pte Ltd — sales@envisiondatasg.com — or WhatsApp Steve directly on +65 9088 4899.
Leave a Reply