SpaceX plans to develop a 125,000-acre (50,585-hectare) launch complex at Pecan Island in Louisiana’s Vermilion Parish as part of a USD 100 billion investment in its Starship programme and satellite ambitions. The company has named the proposed facility Starbase Louisiana.
SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell outlined the plans at an event with Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry and other state officials. Construction is expected to begin in 2027, with the first Starship launch planned for 2029.
The facility is expected to become SpaceX’s fourth launch site in the US and its largest. Shotwell said the site could eventually support thousands of Starship launches annually, although reaching that level will depend on overcoming engineering challenges and securing the required regulatory approvals.
SpaceX plans to develop the Louisiana facility as a largely self-sustaining spaceport. The proposed infrastructure includes its own methane production for rocket propellant, power generation, deep-water shipping facilities for transporting Starships from Texas and vehicle processing facilities. Shotwell also said the site could eventually have an airport.
The Pecan Island property covers an area more than eight times the size of Manhattan. SpaceX said large portions of the land will remain natural wetlands without infrastructure. Company plans showed multiple launch pads surrounded by areas of vegetation.
The site had previously been involved in a decade-long legal dispute between local parishes and ExxonMobil over coastal drilling and canal dredging. The parishes had alleged that the oil company’s activities contributed to wetland loss in the state. Louisiana reached an agreement with ExxonMobil to settle the case in June, and the lawsuit was subsequently dismissed. This cleared the way for SpaceX’s plans for the 18-mile coastal strip, which had been under discussion with state officials since February.
The Louisiana project is part of SpaceX’s broader expansion across the southern US. The company has developed Colossus AI data centres in Tennessee and Mississippi, operates Starlink facilities in Austin, Texas, and is also planning a chip plant in central Texas.
The project is expected to create more than 3,000 jobs in the region. The governor’s office said the positions would carry an average annual salary of USD 92,600, which is about 192% higher than the average wage in Vermilion Parish.
SpaceX’s Louisiana facility will not include rocket manufacturing operations, unlike its Starbase campus in South Texas. Instead, the site is expected to focus on launching and processing Starship vehicles. Starbase Texas remains the company’s only active Starship launch location while the next-generation rocket is still under development.
SpaceX is also developing two Starship launch pads in Florida near its existing Falcon 9 facilities. The company operates additional Falcon 9 launch infrastructure at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California.
Starship is central to Elon Musk’s plans to expand the Starlink satellite network and eventually deploy as many as 1 million AI data-processing satellites in orbit. The rocket is also expected to play a role in NASA’s Artemis programme for lunar exploration.
Pecan Island’s location is also useful for SpaceX’s satellite plans. Rockets launched from the site can travel south over the Gulf of Mexico and enter sun-synchronous orbit, an orbital path that provides consistent exposure to sunlight and can support solar-powered satellites.
SpaceX’s development of Starbase Texas has previously faced opposition from some local residents and environmental groups over concerns about water, noise and environmental pollution, as well as pressure on some residents to sell their land.
Environmental concerns are also relevant to the Louisiana project because Pecan Island is a protected habitat for numerous migratory bird species. Shotwell said SpaceX would support the protection and restoration of the area’s marshlands and coastline, which provide a natural barrier against flooding.
Environmental groups have raised concerns based on the impact of Starship launches in South Texas, where launches have damaged shorebird eggs and nests through gravel and debris, according to environmental studies cited by the groups.
Shotwell said SpaceX would provide funding for environmental protection, restoration and stewardship during construction of the Louisiana launch site. She also said birds would be able to return to the area after launches, as she argued that they would leave temporarily rather than remain displaced for extended periods.
Source Reuters