SpaceX plans $100B Louisiana starbase in state’s largest investment

SpaceX has unveiled plans for a $100 billion starbase in Louisiana, marking the state's largest investment to date. The ambitious project will span across approximately 125,000 to 130,000 acres of coastal marshland near Pecan Island in Vermilion Parish, effectively creating a new launch hub for SpaceX's Starship vehicle. This significant expansion comes alongside the company's existing sites in South Texas and Cape Canaveral, Florida, providing a critical third location for operations.

The property became available following the dismissal of a federal coastal damages lawsuit, clearing the way for SpaceX to acquire this expansive tract of land. Construction is set to commence by the end of 2027, with the first Starship launch anticipated as early as 2029, and site operations beginning in 2030. The location offers an ideal launch geometry, enabling SpaceX to launch Starships southward over the Gulf of Mexico and over Earth’s polar regions, a trajectory crucial for deploying a fleet of up to one million data-center satellites into near-polar orbits.

This strategic positioning will support SpaceX's plans to launch larger, upgraded Starlink satellites for enhanced internet capacity, as well as NASA astronauts on lunar missions as early as 2028.

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