Elon Musk’s SpaceX Boosts South Texas Economy with Starbase Facility
SpaceX on Tuesday released its local economic impact figures for its Starbase facility near Boca Chica Beach in Cameron County, Texas. The data was released through county officials, highlighting contributions that include investing $3 billion in infrastructure across its 350-acre site, which includes more than 200,000 square feet of manufacturing space.
According to the aerospace company, which was rumored to have been in discussions about going public last year, Starbase has generated over $800 million in state and local government capital income and indirect business taxes. Earlier this year, SpaceX founder and CEO Elon Musk moved the company’s state of incorporation to Texas from Delaware after a Delaware judge voided Musk’s $55 billion compensation package for Tesla (Nasdaq: TSLA).
SpaceX says it created over 3,400 full-time jobs at Starbase and an additional 21,400 indirect jobs throughout the region, and has worked with at least 80 local suppliers of goods and services, amounting to more than $90 million in expenditures.
The document also says that SpaceX’s presence has also boosted tourism in the area, with a single Starship launch drawing over 11,000 visitors and generating more than $99 million in tourism revenue. It noted that in 2023, an estimated 20,000 tourists and 16,500 official visitors traveled to South Texas to witness a launch or visit Starbase.
“We look forward to additional growth and investment in the future as SpaceX carries on their mission to explore space, return us to the moon and colonize Mars,” said Cameron County Judge Eddie Treviño, Jr. in the release.
In related news, Musk and SpaceX are facing a lawsuit from eight former employees who allege they were illegally fired for raising concerns about gender discrimination and sexual harassment at the company. The suit was filed on Wednesday last week in California state court.
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