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Rocket Lab (New Mexico)
Key Facts
Rocket Lab is the parent company of SolAero Technologies Group
Project Summary
The Department of Commerce awarded Rocket Lab, the parent company of space power subsidiary provider SolAero Technologies Corp., up to $23.9 million in direct funding to create a more robust and resilient supply of space-grade solar cells that power spacecrafts and satellites. The investment will support a modernization and expansion of Rocket Lab’s solar cell facility in Albuquerque, New Mexico, to increase its production capacity by 50%.
Economic and National Security Impact
Rocket Lab is one of two companies in the United States that specializes in the production of highly efficient and radiation resistant compound semiconductors called space-grade solar cells – devices used in space to convert light to electricity. Rocket Lab’s space-grade solar cells power important U.S. space programs, such as missile awareness systems and exploratory science missions, including the James Webb Space Telescope, NASA’s Artemis lunar explorations, the Ingenuity Mars Helicopter, and the Mars Insight Lander. Rocket Lab’s technology also serves a growing commercial satellite market.
The modernization and expansion of Rocket Lab’s solar cell facility in Albuquerque would increase the company’s compound semiconductor production by 50% within the next three years – helping to meet the growing national security and commercial demand for these solar cells in the United States.
Project Statistics: Rocket Lab | ||
|---|---|---|
Project Summary | Recipient | Rocket Lab |
| Location(s) | Albuquerque, New Mexico | |
| Congressional District | New Mexico's 1st Congressional District | |
| Estimated Job Creation | Over 100 direct jobs | |
Financial Summary | Program | CHIPS Program Office |
| Direct Funding Amount | Up to $23.9 million | |
| Expected Capital Expenditure | $97.5 million | |
Facility Summary | Project Type | Expansion and modernization of Rocket Lab’s existing compound semiconductor production facility |
| Project Timeline | Expected to increase the facility’s production capacity by 50% within 3 years | |
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