SpaceX eyes LA plant for spaceship manufacturing
Port of Los Angeles OKs site for SpaceX
SpaceX is poised to build a new spacecraft manufacturing facility in Los Angeles.
The Elon Musk-headed space business is eyeing a 12.4-acre site on Terminal Island for a new facility to manufacture aerospace components for spacecraft, records show.
The Los Angeles Board of Harbor Commissioners OK’d plans Thursday to lease the site to SpaceX for 10 years with two optional 10-year extensions, with rent starting at $1.69 million per year. SpaceX will also have the option to add 6.8 more acres to the facility.
SpaceX may build spacecraft at this 12-acre Los Angeles facility. (Port of Los Angeles)
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SpaceX’s plans could add 130 aerospace jobs plus others in fields like construction, records show.
The site is a former Southwest Marine facility that officials said has been vacant for more than 15 years.
SpaceX would also use the facility for its spacecraft recovery operations, according to a board presentation. The company has already been recovering spacecraft like its Dragon off the coast of California and returning them to the Port of Los Angeles.
The company’s headquarters are also based in the Los Angeles area, and it has other offices and a launch facility nearby.
SpaceX had previously eyed the site for construction of its Starship rockets, Space News reported. Instead, the company opted to have competing teams in Boca Chica, Texas, and Cocoa, Florida, work on the rockets. In December, SpaceX paused some activity at the Florida site, Florida Today reported.
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Musk shared videos on Twitter this week showing off rocket nosecone production and stacking of various rocket parts at the Boca Chica facility.
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