Canada’s commercial space launch industry is ready for lift-off (pun very much intended).
What happened: Canada and the U.S. completed negotiations on a deal that would allow American organizations to carry out commercial space launches in Canada. Once the deal is officially signed, it will open up a huge new clientele base for Canadian launch operators.
- In 2022, the U.S. was the country that carried out the most commercial space launches, with startups shooting their rockets and satellites into the sky.
Big picture: Canada has its eyes on being a space launch hub. Last year, the feds began a two-part strategy to promote more space launch activity — reviewing requests from firms to carry out launches under existing laws and devising a new framework to license launches.
- It’s still early days, however, as Canada does not yet have a commercial spaceport. Nova Scotia-based Maritime Launch Services is constructing the nation’s first in Canso, N.S.
Why it matters: The space biz is projected to be worth as much as US$1.8 trillion by 2035, per a recent McKinsey report. With aerospace talent and an ideal geography for launches (lots of wide open spaces) Canada is well-positioned to take a chunk of that.—QH