SpaceX chief to Texas: Let's make a deal

Elon Musk's private space-flight company is interested in a site at Boca Chica Beach. Elon Musk's private space-flight company is interested in a site at Boca Chica Beach. Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close SpaceX chief to Texas: Let's make a deal 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

AUSTIN — California billionaire Elon Musk remains hopeful that plans to build the world's first commercial spaceport near Brownsville will take flight later this year.

But first, Texas faces stiff competition from other states also hoping to land the project.

Florida, Georgia and Puerto Rico have all presented attractive economic incentives. The final decision will likely hinge on which location makes the best offer, Musk, founder of the Los Angeles-based SpaceX, told state lawmakers Friday.

“We're optimistic about making this work in Texas,” he said during a hearing of the state House Appropriations Committee. “Any support that Texas could offer would be absolutely helpful in that direction.”

For months, SpaceX, a pioneer in the private space-flight industry, has eyed a location on Boca Chica Beach, 23 miles east of Brownsville, to construct a commercial launch pad capable of sending spacecraft into orbit.

Eventually, Musk told lawmakers Friday, the site could become the primary hub for company flights ferrying astronauts to the International Space Station and well-heeled tourists into the stars.

“We're talking about something that's really in the big leagues here,” he said. “We're talking about the commercial version of Cape Canaveral.”

The company already operates a test site for its rocket engines in McGregor, outside Waco, and began buying up property along the Texas coastline last year.

With plans to make the final decision this year, Texas has only a short window to best its competition, said state Rep. Rene Oliveira, D-Brownsville, who has emerged as the project's primary cheerleader in the Capitol.

His colleagues at Friday's hearing appeared to need little convincing. Though they were presented with no specific proposals, many of the committee's members appeared star struck in Musk's presence.

The South African native, who was also scheduled to deliver a keynote address today at the South by Southwest Interactive Festival, has earned celebrity status in the tech world after co-founding the online money transferring website PayPal and the electric-car manufacturer Tesla.

Committee Chairman Jim Pitts, R-Waxahachie, implored Musk to regale lawmakers with tales of Tesla's automobiles. Meanwhile, State Rep. Cecil Bell Jr., R-Magnolia, described a recent trip to SpaceX's McGregor facility as “really neat.”

Gov. Rick Perry also has declared himself a fan. During his State of the State address earlier this year, the governor touted SpaceX and other commercial space flight companies as “part of a growing presence in this important market” in the state.

Other companies already operating in Texas include XCOR, which operates a facility in Midland, and Blue Origin, led by Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos, which runs a site near Van Horn.

Musk's proposed Boca Chica spaceport would be a much larger operation, capable of launching at least 12 rockets a year.

Investing taxpayer money in the future of private space travel doesn't come without risk.

In New Mexico, a $209 million taxpayer funded spaceport project run by Virgin Galactic has had trouble attracting flights since it opened last year. And while the Federal Aviation Administration has already begun an impact study on the proposed Brownsville site, it is unlikely to complete its work before this year's legislative session ends in May.

That means lawmakers would have to wait until the 2015 legislative session to pass any new laws in response to roadblocks the FAA finds. Oliveira said Friday he hopes to pre-emptively address any potential issues with bills before this year's session ends in May.

For instance, he filed legislation this week that would temporarily waive rules barring commercial use of state parkland so that SpaceX could launch rockets at Boca Chica.

As for the economic incentives, neither Musk nor Oliveira was willing to offer a specific figure Friday that would help seal the deal.

Lawmakers in Florida have discussed their own offer from a $20 million-a-year economic development fund set up specifically to benefit aerospace firms.

Musk's firm already operates one launch pad at Cape Canaveral for NASA-contracted cargo flights. He said Friday the state is not eager to lose future business.

Oliveira has said Texas is prepared to offer $3.2 million via its economic development arm. Another $3 million could be available through local incentives, the legislator has said.

“SpaceX has already made a major commitment to Texas,” Oliveira said Friday. “But we've got to put our money where our mouth is and try to make ourselves attractive to the industry.”

jroebuck@express-news.net

Twitter: @jeremyrroebuck