Rocket launch could boost local economy

Rocket Lab founder Peter Beck

A Kiwi-founded rocket company is eyeing a remote location on the Mahia Peninsula as a possible launch base for getting international satellites into space.

Auckland-based Rocket Lab has produced a 10-tonne rocket capable of sending satellites into space for about $6 million - a fraction of the average cost of about $150 million.

The company, headed by New Zealander Peter Beck, has received financial backing from Warehouse founder Sir Stephen Tindall, the New Zealand Government and US financiers.

The company's point of difference in the global satellite-launching business is its carbon-composite rocket construction technology, which keeps costs down. It said last year it had commitments for more than 30 launches.

Rocket Lab is understood to be in discussions over access to a specific site on the Mahia Peninsula - one of three locations in the North Island that could be suitable as a launch base.

The other sites being considered by the company are believed to be in the Far North and north of Gisborne.

The company's ideal location is understood to be somewhere remote, but with reliable access to amenities such as power and internet connectivity.

If the launch site did end up being established in northern Hawke's Bay, and Rocket Lab's projected satellite launch contracts came to fruition, the development could provide a significant boost to the local economy.

The company's website says it hopes to be able to provide at least 100 satellite launches per year.

A Rocket Lab spokeswoman said the company was "in the very early stages of our process" and could not discuss details.

"What I can tell you is that we're looking at various options," she said.

The Mahia Peninsula is within the Wairoa district. Wairoa Mayor Craig Little and Wairoa District Council chief executive Fergus Power could not be reached for comment.

The council has had a focus over the past year on developing a strategy aimed at encouraging new and innovative businesses into the district.