SpaceX to invest $100 billion in new Gulf Coast Starship launch complex

SpaceX revealed a $100 billion investment to develop a second Starship launch complex on a former Exxon property in Vermilion Parish, Louisiana, ending a seven-year site search. The Gulf Coast port will be roughly 10 hours from the existing Starbase in South Texas and is projected to begin construction in 2027, with LED forecasting initial operations by 2030. The venture is expected to generate 3,000 direct jobs over a decade and peak construction employment of more than 30,000 workers.

While the company continues testing Starship, a forthcoming 14th flight may place the upper stage in orbit for the first time, and it still must demonstrate full booster-upper-stage reuse. Elon Musk has said Falcon rockets will be phased out once Starship can launch multiple times per one outlet. State agencies, including the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, have been consulted to mitigate environmental impacts, and the project includes plans for on-site propellant production, power, deep-water shipping and an airport.