Space Exploration Technologies Corp. said on Wednesday it has invested about $500 million in commercial-space ventures, shedding light on the closely held company's efforts to develop private rockets and capsules even as congressional skepticism about such projects grows.
SpaceX Chief Executive Elon Musk spoke about its hopes at the National Press Club in Washington in April.
The figure is substantially larger than founder and Chief Executive Elon Musk previously spelled out to lawmakers and goes beyond earlier statements that he has invested $100 million of his personal wealth in the Southern California-based maker of launchers and spacecraft. The nine-year-old company, which is widely known as SpaceX, has said little publicly about its overall spending on design, manufacturing, testing, personnel and facilities.
Testifying before the House Science Committee, Mr. Musk said the company was created "to advance the cause of space" rather than maximize profits. He added that he has retained majority control of the company "to assure that those idealistic goals of SpaceX remain."
The government has invested roughly $300 million in the company, which is considered one of the leading contenders for additional federal financial support.
Wednesday's disclosure comes amid escalating Capitol Hill debate over the projected risks and likely taxpayer costs of funding commercial-space efforts. The White House and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration want lawmakers to appropriate as much as $6 billion over the next five years for such programs, but bipartisan support for slashing that amount has grown partly because many companies are shying away from committing sizable investments of their own.
John Elbon, head of Boeing Co.'s commercial-space efforts, told the panel that government funding is projected to be the "preponderance" of the company's investment in future manned systems.
Boeing and other companies are also seeking congressional help in reducing anticipated private insurance costs for commercially developed rockets, as well as capping potential financial liabilities in the event of a major accident.
Such moves could add substantially to the total taxpayer burden and drew the attention of some politicians.
Rep. Donna Edwards, a Maryland Democrat said.
"Sooner rather than later, the taxpayer is going to have to know how many federal dollars will be required for such legal protections."
Mr. Musk reiterated SpaceX pledges to comply with fixed-price contracts if it wins the competition to take astronauts into orbit. He said he would commit to a price of about $20 million per seat per trip, which could begin as early as 2014. The price is roughly one-third of what Russia is now charging NASA for similar missions.
In the next few months, SpaceX hopes to launch its unmanned Dragon capsule to link up for the first time with the International Space Station and deliver a small amount of cargo, followed by the start of regular cargo deliveries probably in late 2012.
To highlight SpaceX's commercial posture, Mr. Musk said that its approximately $3 billion backlog of launch contracts is about evenly divided between NASA and private-sector customers
In response to questions from committee members, Bill Gerstenmaier, a senior manned-exploration official at NASA, was less certain about anticipated timelines and cost savings. Depending on congressional funding levels, he said the agency believes it could support more than one commercial-space venture to begin transporting astronauts—perhaps as early as 2016—and charging prices equal to or slightly below Russia's prices. NASA has estimated spending between $4 billion and $6 billion to reach that goal.
COMMENTARY: It's incredible what SpaceX's CEO Elon Musk has been able to accomplish in only nine years. However, within the last three years, or thereabouts, SpaceX has accelerated the development and launche of its Falcon 9 multi-stage rocket and Dragon spacecraft. In November 2011, SpaceX will launch the Falcon 9 multi-stage rocket and attempt to dock the Dragon spacecraft with the International Space Station. Elon Musk doesn't just hope to return man back to the Moon, but launch the first space mission to Mars by 2025. A mission to Mars would cost $250 to $500 billion, but if SpaceX were given the funding, I have no doubt that Elon Musk and his space scientists and engineers will get American astronauts there.
If I were Congress and NASA I would definitely approve funding for privately-owned space companies like SpaceX. SpaceX is much more numble and can get a lot more done with taxpayer dollars than NASA ever did. Previous space launches using the NASA Space Shuttle cost $250 million each. SpaceX's claims that it can launch payloads into space at 40% what they cost using the Space Shuttle, so to me its a no brainer. NASA officials are just jealous that they couldn't launch things into space cheaper than SpaceX. What the Russians are charging the U.S. to shuttle our astronauts to and from the International Space Station amounts to a ripoff. The sooner Congress approves funding the better.
Courtesy of an article dated October 27, 2011 appearing in The Wall Street Journal
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