War not affecting Ukrainian rocket supplier for Nova Scotia spaceport project

Stephen Matier, CEO of Maritime Launch Services, talks with reporters Monday, Dec. 11, 2017. (CANADIAN PRESS/Andrew Vaughan)

HALIFAX — The company planning to build Canada's first spaceport in northeastern Nova Scotia says the war in Ukraine has so far not affected its supplier of medium-range rockets.

Steve Matier, CEO of Maritime Launch Services, says daily planning work continues with the makers of the Cyclone-4M rocket, who are based in Dnipro, Ukraine.

Matier said in an interview Tuesday his company still hopes to conduct its first launch sometime in 2023, once it gets final construction and environmental approval from the province for its proposed facilities near Canso, N.S.

He says the initial launches will likely use small-range rockets to take payloads into lower-earth orbit, adding that the Cyclone rocket would be used for higher-orbit operations.

Matier says his company has time to find another supplier if the war in Ukraine starts to disrupt operations of the Cyclone manufacturers.

Meanwhile, Maritime Launch Services was listed for public trading today on the NEO Exchange, a stock exchange run by a Canadian financial technology company.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 27, 2022.