SpaceX (SPCX.US) invests $100 billion to build Starship super launch base, aiming for one million space data center satellites

According to Zhitong Finance APP, SpaceX (SPCX.US) plans to build a new Starship launch site with an investment of up to $100 billion on the southern coast of Louisiana, further expanding the heavy rocket’s launch capabilities. This project will not only become SpaceX’s third potential Starship launch site, but will also provide crucial infrastructure support for the company’s future deployment of space data center satellites, upgraded Starlink satellites, and lunar missions.

Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry jointly announced the plan with SpaceX executives on Tuesday. According to the proposal, SpaceX has been authorized to build the new site in the Pecan Island region along the southern coast of Louisiana, covering around 125,000 acres (approximately 506 square kilometers). Once completed, this will become the company's third Starship launch site after southern Texas and Cape Canaveral, Florida.

Currently, Starship is primarily manufactured and launched in southern Texas, and SpaceX is simultaneously developing a second launch site at Cape Canaveral, Florida.

SpaceX President and COO Gwynne Shotwell stated at the press conference that this will be an "unprecedented" project, truly turning what once seemed like science fiction technology into reality.

After completing the largest IPO in history in June this year, SpaceX is now in a phase of large-scale infrastructure expansion. In addition to the new Starship launch site, the company has also begun construction of a chip factory called "Terafab" in Grimes County, Texas.

Terafab is a key part of SpaceX CEO Elon Musk’s initiative to vertically integrate the supply chain and develop orbital data centers.

Musk previously set very ambitious long-term goals for Starship, hoping to eventually achieve multiple launches per day once the system matures. Adding launch sites will provide greater operational flexibility for SpaceX to increase Starship’s launch frequency. However, to date, Starship has only completed two launches this year.

The geographic location of the Louisiana site is particularly important for SpaceX’s future space data center plans. Starship launching from here can fly south over the Gulf of Mexico and pass over Earth’s polar regions, making it easier to deploy satellites into near-polar orbits.

SpaceX previously proposed an ambitious plan to eventually establish a space constellation of up to 1 million data center satellites, with many expected to be deployed in near-polar orbit.

Additionally, natural gas resources near Pecan Island can provide the needed fuel for Starship, which is another significant reason SpaceX chose this area.

According to plans made public by the Louisiana state government, the new site is expected to feature five launch complexes, each equipped with two launch pads, for a maximum of ten launch pads. The base will also include propellant production facilities, power generation facilities, Starship rocket processing facilities, and residential areas for SpaceX staff and their families.

The project is scheduled to begin construction in 2027, with the first Starship launch expected in 2029. Shotwell also mentioned the possibility of building an airport locally in the future and estimated that the entire project could create about 3,000 to 10,000 local jobs.

As SpaceX’s business continues to expand, Starship is expected to gradually become the most important launch platform in the company’s entire rocket system. In the short term, Starship will be used to launch the larger, upgraded new generation of Starlink satellites, thereby increasing the capacity of SpaceX's existing satellite internet system.

Over the longer term, Starship also carries out two key missions: SpaceX plans to begin deploying orbital data centers with Starship as early as 2027; at the same time, this rocket is also expected to carry out NASA’s crewed lunar mission as early as 2028, sending astronauts to the surface of the Moon.

On Tuesday, SpaceX also completed the final planned Falcon 9 rocket Starlink launch mission from Florida. According to company plans, future Starlink missions using Falcon 9 will be concentrated in California, while Starlink missions from Florida will gradually be shifted to Starship once it is fully operational.

The area where Pecan Island is located was previously owned by ExxonMobil (XOM.US) for several decades, later returned to the Louisiana state government as part of a settlement agreement regarding coastal land loss litigation.

With SpaceX’s arrival, the company has also pledged to cooperate with the Louisiana state government to conduct large-scale coastal ecological restoration projects, including wetland protection, maintaining wildlife habitats, and strengthening storm defenses.

Overall, the $100 billion Louisiana Starbase is not only a new rocket launch site, but also a critical part of SpaceX’s efforts to build the next generation of space infrastructure centered around Starship.

If Musk’s plans for high-frequency Starship launches, one million data center satellites, and orbital data centers are gradually realized, SpaceX’s demand for rocket launch capacity will far exceed current levels. Simultaneously building Starship bases in Texas, Florida, and Louisiana will provide the infrastructure foundation needed to greatly increase launch frequencies in the future.