Canadian company to build country’s first rocket engine test facility

Skip to Content News Archives Economy Energy Oil & Gas Renewables Electric Vehicles Mining Commodities Agriculture Real Estate Mortgages Mortgage Rates Finance Banking Insurance Fintech Cryptocurrency Work Wealth Smart Money Wealth Management Investor Personal Finance Family Finance Retirement Taxes High Net Worth FP Comment Executive Women Puzzmo Newsletters Financial Times Business Essentials More Innovation Information Technology FP500 Podcasts Small Business Lives Told Tails Told Shopping Financial Post Store Obituaries Place a Notice Advertising Advertising With Us Advertising Solutions Postmedia Ad Manager Sponsorship Requests Classifieds Place a Classifieds ad Working Profile Settings My Subscriptions My Offers Newsletters Customer Service FAQ News Economy Energy Mining Real Estate Finance Work Wealth Investor FP Comment Executive Women Puzzmo Newsletters Financial Times Business Essentials This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.HomeInnovationCanadian company to build country's first rocket engine test facilityThe full journey from startup launch to rocket launch is estimated to take seven years and cost over US$600 millionLast updated 19 minutes ago Global space investments have hit record highs, with private investment in space companies worldwide more than doubling to US$23 billion so far this year. Photo by HECTOR RETAMAL/AFP via Getty ImagesCanada Rocket Co. says it’ll spend $30 million to build the country’s first large-scale rocket engine test facility to help support efforts to develop sovereign space launch capabilities.THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLYSubscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.Exclusive articles from Barbara Shecter, Joe O'Connor, Gabriel Friedman, and others.Daily content from Financial Times, the world's leading global business publication.Unlimited online access to read articles from Financial Post, National Post and 15 news sites across Canada with one account.National Post ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on.Daily puzzles, including the New York Times Crossword.SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLESSubscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.Exclusive articles from Barbara Shecter, Joe O'Connor, Gabriel Friedman and others.Daily content from Financial Times, the world's leading global business publication.Unlimited online access to read articles from Financial Post, National Post and 15 news sites across Canada with one account.National Post ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on.Daily puzzles, including the New York Times Crossword.REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLESCreate an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.Access articles from across Canada with one account.Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments.Enjoy additional articles per month.Get email updates from your favourite authors.THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK.Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.Access articles from across Canada with one accountShare your thoughts and join the conversation in the commentsEnjoy additional articles per monthGet email updates from your favourite authorsSign In or Create an AccountThe Toronto-based company, which is developing a medium-lift launch vehicle capable of carrying 12,500-kilogram payloads, said the 50-acre facility in London, Ont., will be the only one in Canada capable of testing rocket engines that exceed one meganewton in thrust.This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.“(That means) being able to test the equivalent of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket engine statically,” cofounder and chief executive Hugh Kolias said.Get the latest headlines, breaking news and columns.By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc.A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder.The next issue of Top Stories will soon be in your inbox.We encountered an issue signing you up. Please try againCanada is the only G7 country that lacks space launch capabilities, so it relies on others, particularly the United States, to send satellites into space.Governments use space-based satellites for different functions, including navigation, communications and Earth observation and monitoring for military, civilian and scientific use cases, but a global rocket shortage has governments and companies scrambling to hitch a ride to space.Kolias said the rocket engine test site puts the company one step closer to its first rocket launch, which the company is targeting for 2032.“From a sovereignty perspective, it’s key infrastructure and it amplifies and puts Canada on the map for building this type of infrastructure and capability set,” he said. “There are very few rocket engine test facilities globally and even fewer that are large enough to test engines that are capable of taking a vehicle the size of Falcon 9 and what we’re building to orbit.”This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.Canada Rocket said the Jeremy Hansen Test Facility will be fully operational by 2028 and is located on leased land from the Greater London International Airport Authority. It expects to create around 40 skilled jobs over the next 18 months.Kolias estimates the full journey from startup launch to rocket launch will take around seven years and cost more than US$600 million.“Demand is expected to exponentially increase driven by constellation sets and orbital data centres,” he said. “Between those use cases, plus the Moon and Mars missions, if you were to project demand over the next decade-plus, there’s still a 2,000-plus-tonne gap in the market that is unserviced.”He also said the company is seeing significant interest from major Canadian and U.S. institutional investors as they search for new launch providers.“We’re pleasantly surprised with the Canadian firms that are stepping up, see the vision and want to be part of the journey,” he said.Global space investments have hit record highs, with private investment in space companies worldwide more than doubling to US$23 billion so far this year as of July, according to British investment firm Seraphim Space Investment Trust PLC and Bermuda-based insurer Relm Insurance Ltd.Canada Rocket has raised nearly $23 million since launching in January, including funding from the Business Development Bank of Canada, Ripple Ventures Fund GP Inc. and Panache Ventures Investment Fund.We apologize, but this video has failed to load.This advertisement has not loaded yet.Notice for the Postmedia NetworkThis website uses cookies to personalize your content (including ads), and allows us to analyze our traffic. 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