Equatorial Launch Australia (ELA), owner and operator of Australian spaceport, the Arnhem Space Centre (ASC), has welcomed the joint announcement by the President of the United States, Joe Biden and Australia’s Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese, of the signing of the Technology Safeguards Agreement (TSA) on 26 October.
The United States and Australia have signed a Technology Safeguards Agreement (TSA) that provides the legal and technical framework for U.S. commercial space launch vehicles to launch from Australia, which will protect sensitive U.S. launch technology and data while in Australia and creates the potential for new space-related commercial opportunities between the two countries.
“We have been engaged with and negotiating with U.S. rocket manufacturers for several years now and we have all be awaiting the TSA completion. Today’s events are great news for us and clears the way for us to finalise our contracts with U.S. launchers. The agreement with the U.S. will be the most comprehensive and detailed TSA of its kind for any nation and there has been a lot of effort by key Australian space industry parties and government entities behind the scenes to ensure we get it right,” said Michael Jones, Chairman and Group CEO of ELA.
“This announcement overnight by President Biden and Prime Minister Albanese means that ELA can now move ahead to finalise multiple draft contracts we have negotiated with several U.S. launchers and we are thrilled that the two governments have announced this landmark agreement, giving us the green light to finalise our contract with U.S. rocket manufacturers.”