About 1000 hectares on Canterbury’s Kaitōrete Spit could become home to a new rocket launch site and aerospace research facility.
It’s thanks to a new commercial joint venture between Kaitōrete Limited (Te Taumutu Rūnanga and Wairewa Rūnanga) and the Crown called Project Tāwhaki.
Project Tāwhaki aims to develop aerospace research and development facilities on the spit, including a possible launch pad. It also aims to protect the local environment with fencing and the planting of 5000 native plants over two years.
Once complete, it’s expected to bring up to $300 million in benefits by its tenth year.
The partnership has been formed to purchase parcels of land near Banks Peninsula. The Government has contributed $16 million to the purchase of the land. The Crown and the Rūnanga will each own 50 per cent shares in the land and project.
Research, Science and Innovation Minister Megan Woods said suitable land for space launches and aerospace testing was “scarce” globally.
“This long finger of land along the coast of Canterbury is an ideal location. I’m delighted that we can come together in partnership with Kaitōrete Limited to achieve collective conservation, cultural and economic wins,” she said.
RocketLab had considered the site for launches in 2015 because it was easy to reach Christchurch from the area, and there were few planes or boats in the area.
But the company eventually chose Mahia Peninsula in Hawke's Bay instead because it was allowed to launch more rockets there per year. For the Kaitōrete Spit site, only 12 rocket launches would be allowed per year.
NASA used the spit for suborbital rocket launches in the 1960s.
Kaitōrete Spit is internationally recognised for its high ecological values. The dry, windswept landscape contains threatened plants, animals and ecosystems that are rare or unique in the wild in New Zealand.
SHARE ME