SpaceX founder and Tesla CEO Elon Musk speaks on a screen during the Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona, Spain, June 29, 2021. REUTERS/Nacho Doce

BARCELONA (Reuters) – Billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk said on Tuesday that his satellite internet service Starlink was growing quickly and he expected the number of customers to reach half a million over the next 12 months.

Starlink now has more than 1,500 satellites aloft and is operating in about a dozen countries, adding more every month, the Tesla Inc CEO said in a video interview aired by the Mobile World Congress, a telecoms industry conference.

Starlink, an array of low-orbit satellites offering high-speed connectivity for people living in remote areas, is already offering a trial service and says it aims for near-global coverage of the populated world this year.

Reporting by Supantha Mukherjee and Clara-Laeila Laudette, Writing by Douglas Busvine; Editing by Gareth Jones

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