Canada faces satellite launch shortage
Satellite companies the world over are facing a traffic jam in getting their equipment into orbit and Canada is years away, at best, from being able to solve the problem for its own space sector. SpaceX, whose Falcon 9 medium-lift rockets have been the workhorses of private orbital launches, has stopped taking new Falcon 9 bookings beyond 2028. The Elon Musk-led company plans to replace them with its next-generation Starship rockets, which keep exploding. Canadian space startups are struggling with how they’ll get new satellites into orbit as SpaceX has stopped taking new commercial bookings on its heavily used Falcon 9 rockets.
According to Kristen Cote, chief technology officer of Edmonton-based Earth-observation company Wyvern, potential investors are challenging the company about its plans for launching new satellites. Cote said, “I think this is the first time where we’ve had serious questions from investors about, ‘You have all these plans—that’s great. How are you going to launch all these satellites?’”
Canada’s Launch Capabilities
Although Canada is working on building its own launch capability, a domestic replacement is years away at best. The federal government has prioritized light-lift rockets through a competition called Launch the North, which is paying out $25 million in incentives to three companies. Like sturdy little hatchback cars, light-lift rockets have plenty of uses, but are no help when what you need is a tractor-trailer like the Falcon 9. (Meanwhile, if a medium-lift rocket like the Falcon 9 is an 18-wheeler, the super-heavy-lift Starship is one of those giant mining trucks where the driver climbs a ladder to reach the cab.)
Industry Minister Mélanie Joly presented a vision of a full stack of Canadian space capabilities, including launching satellites, at the SpaceBound conference. The federal government is already investing $200 million in Maritime Launch Services’ launch site near Canso, N.S., through a 10-year contract. Joly said, “Our space launch capability, based in Nova Scotia, will also be key to building on this ambition and maintaining Canada’s leading position in the space race.”
Dan Goldberg, CEO of Telesat, said his company needs a launch company that can take a lot of satellites up at a time, multiple times each week, at a good price. Telesat has 225 satellites to launch for its Lightspeed communication constellation. Goldberg said the company can’t afford to pay a premium for launch services. “For us to be competitive, all of our cost inputs need to be world-class competitive,” he said.
Challenges Ahead
The Canada Rocket Company is working on a medium-lift vehicle but it isn’t ready. The company plans to test engine components in December. Hugh Kolias, CEO of Canada Rocket Company, said it takes between six to eight years to get any new rocket ready to reach orbit, targeting the closer end of that spectrum. However, this means a Canadian-made rocket won’t be available until after 2028.
Stephen Matier, CEO of Maritime Launch Services, said his company’s launch site in Canso, N.S., has the necessary approvals for medium-lift rockets. There is no such Canadian rocket.
Canada’s space companies are struggling to find alternative launch options, and the federal government’s investments in launch capabilities are still in the early stages. As Goldberg noted, the lack of a domestic launch capability is a major concern for Telesat and other Canadian space companies, which need to be competitive in the global market.
Telesat is expecting to spend about 20 per cent of Lightspeed’s budget on launching the satellites, or about US$1 billion. The company has booked launches with SpaceX before the Falcon 9 phaseout, but the long-term solution remains uncertain.
The company once worked with a Ukrainian rocket company that would have supplied them, before the Russian invasion scuppered those plans.
NordSpace, a competitor to Maritime Launch Services, is developing a launch site in Newfoundland. Its CEO, Rahul Goel, called the idea of launching a Telesat-scale constellation from Canada “aspirational.” Like Maritime Launch Services, NordSpace is currently focused on being able to launch rockets that could carry a couple of Telesat satellites up to replace broken ones or expand the Lightspeed constellation slightly.
Reaction Trends, another rocket maker, just announced plans to rush toward a medium-lift model by 2031.
