The federal government has committed nearly $225 million to build out Canada’s ability to send its own rockets into space, including $200 million to lease a dedicated launch pad that will serve as the central foundation for a multi-user spaceport near Canso, NS.
“While these announcements today are about rockets and launch sites for the rockets, they’re also about ensuring that Canada can respond to our biggest defense and security challenges.”
Defence minister David McGuinty
Defence minister David McGuinty announced the commitment at the Canadian Space Agency’s David Florida Laboratory in Ottawa on Monday morning. The funding, part of Canada’s $6.6-billion Defence Industrial Strategy (DIS), secures a 10-year lease at Maritime Launch Services’ spaceport in Nova Scotia, and supports three companies building rockets in Canada.
Standing in front of a thermal vacuum chamber, McGuinty said the investments will help strengthen Canada’s national security. These companies “are putting us on the path to launch satellites and payloads from Canadian soil, on Canadian-built rockets, at Canadian-run facilities,” McGuinty said.
The cornerstone of the announcement is a $200-million agreement for the use of MLS’ spaceport near Canso, NS, starting this year. Following an initial $20 million cash payment by the end of the month, MLS said the federal government will pay $5 million per fiscal quarter to lease Spaceport Nova Scotia.
The government said the spaceport will support the operational needs of the Department of National Defence (DND), the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF), and the wider Government of Canada, as well as “ad hoc access to allies and partners.”
Until now, MLS has focused on commercial space launches. It claimed its spaceport will be the first commercial orbital launch complex in Canada, but the project has faced delays. MLS president and CEO Steve Matier told reporters at the event that spaceport construction is resuming next week, with two more launch pads in development.
The government’s dedicated launch pad is expected to reach initial operational readiness by the end of 2026, according to MLS.
When asked by BetaKit why the government went with MLS over competing options, or building public infrastructure, McGuinty called MLS a “good company” but added that “there’s going to be room for expansion.”
“If we get this right, and we will, the capacity for growth is enormous,” McGuinty said. “There’ll be lots of room for lots of folks to play in this space and to be able to assist us in doing our jobs and giving our military and our defence folks what they need.”
MLS conducted its first commercial rocket launch back in November, but fell slightly short of its intended target. Ontario-based NordSpace, meanwhile, is building its own commercial spaceport in Newfoundland. So far, NordSpace’s rocket launch attempts have also fallen short due to technical issues.
Alongside its $200-million commitment to MLS, the government is pledging nearly $25 million to Toronto-based Canada Rocket Company (CRC), Nordspace, and Longueuil, Que.-based Reaction Dynamics. Each company has been awarded an $8.3 million grant under the first round of the DND’s Innovation for Defence Excellence and Security (IDEaS) Launch the North contest to build out their rocket launch capabilities.
McGuinty said the grants would help the companies conduct the testing needed to advance to the second phase of the project.
Space is one of the federal government’s “key sovereign capabilities” outlined in the DIS. This includes a focus on building space-based intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance, satellite communications, and space launch capabilities in Canada. Under the DIS, the 2025 budget committed $182.6 million over three years to the DND to establish a sovereign space launch capability.
CRC emerged from stealth in January with $6.2 million in seed funding to reduce Canada’s reliance on foreign rocket launches by building its own. Since that seed round, CRC said in a release that it has begun construction on a new 7,600 square-foot engine development facility in Toronto, and that its total funding to date has reached $14.7 million, including the IDEaS grant.
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CRC said it will use the government funding to accelerate the development of its light-lift launch vehicle, an initial platform the company has designed to evolve into a medium-lift vehicle capable of deploying up to 6,500kg to orbit by 2034.
On top of trying to build its own commercial spaceport, Nordspace recently struck a partnership with German research institute Fraunhofer Institute for Laser Technology and the German company SWMS to advance its 3D-printed rocket-manufacturing methods. Nordspace is targeting an initial operational capability of a light-lift rocket from Canadian soil by 2028.
Reaction Dynamics, another one of the grant recipients, has participated into NATO’s DIANA tech accelerator, and struck a deal with MLS in August 2025 to conduct its own rocket launch attempt from its spaceport by the third quarter of 2028.
At the event, McGuinty also announced that Canada has become a full member of NATO’s Starlift initiative. The initiative aims to create a network of space launch capabilities so launches can be conducted “at short notice” from spaceports across the alliance, according to a government release.
“While these announcements today are about rockets and launch sites for the rockets, they’re also about ensuring that Canada can respond to our biggest defence and security challenges,” McGuinty concluded.
Feature image courtesy Alex Riehl for BetaKit.