Rocket Lab establishes Australian Subsidiary to support growing National Space Sector

London, 2 March 2023. – Rocket Lab USA, Inc. a launch services and space systems company, announced on the 28th of February that it has established a new wholly-owned subsidiary – Rocket Lab Australia – to explore opportunities to support the expansion of Australia’s national space capabilities. 

The Australian Government has set the goal to triple the size of the Australian space sector from an estimated AUD$4 billion in 2016 to AUD$12 billion alongside creating an additional 20,000 jobs by 2030. To help facilitate this growth, the Government has committed over AUD$2 billion to the civil space sector since 2018 for programs including Earth Observation, satellite infrastructure, high-tech manufacturing, and support for NASA’s Moon to Mars Artemis Program.

“The industry is now poised for an era of rapid expansion driven by new technology, a growing demand for space-enabled data, private investment, and a significantly increased funding commitment from the Australian Government,” says Peter Beck, Rocket Lab founder. “Rocket Lab has already played a key role in supporting Australia’s rapid growth in space by flying several commercially developed Australian satellites on Electron, as well as national launching security payloads developed in partnership with Australia’s Department of Defence.”

The Australian Government has also committed AUD$17 billion for the development of Defence space capabilities as part of the 2020 Force Structure Plan to maintain and upgrade and develop new and existing space capabilities. The Five Eyes intelligence alliance between Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United States, and the United Kingdom is one such example of Australia’s global partnerships. With the establishment of Rocket Lab Australia, the Company now expands its support of the alliance with operations in all but one of the participating countries.