Blue Origin intends to build a launch complex and compete with SpaceX

Blue Origin intends to build a launch complex and compete with SpaceX

Blue Origin, owned by Amazon owner Jeff Bezos, is looking for a site to build an international space launch facility and expects to compete with SpaceX. This was announced by the company’s CEO Bob Smith.

He said in an interview with the Financial Times that the search is still in its early stages and a specific site has not yet been chosen. The company needs the new site to increase the number of launches and meet customer demand because Blue Origin receives orders for “billions of dollars,” Smith explained. The company now launches from a launch pad in Texas and Cape Canaveral (Fla.).

Blue Origin was the first private company to successfully launch, land and re-launch a rocket. However, constant production delays led it to eventually fall behind SpaceX, which had already conducted several successful missions to the International Space Station.

The company is looking for new partners in Europe to expand its offering of space-related services, from building engines to launching rockets. That could really allow it to increase the number of launches and compete with SpaceX, analysts said. “I think we have a lot of opportunities in Europe,” Smith emphasized.

The company is currently developing a super-heavy, two-stage, reusable New Glenn launch vehicle, which is expected to make 12 flights in the next five years. The first launch is expected in 2024. “We need to fulfill that order and be able to fly it and do it well. Our challenge is to get the production and launch cycle up and running,” Smith said, noting he has no fear of competing with another superheavy-lift rocket, SpaceX’s Starship.

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