FORRES, UK (Orbex PR) — Space Hub Sutherland gets the go-ahead from locals after Melness Crofters Estate (MCE) and Highlands & Islands Enterprise (HIE) signed a 75-year lease for the land earmarked for the development.
Below is a reaction from Chris Larmour, CEO of Orbex, the UK-based spaceflight company chosen to launch from the spaceport:
Chris Larmour, CEO of Orbex
“We welcome this
very positive step forward. Orbex’s interactions with the local
community in Tongue, Talmine and Melness have been overwhelmingly
positive and we’re pleased that this strong, long term agreement
is now in place.
“We look forward to
working closely with the local community in the years to come, and we
expect to have many locals working directly on the space launch
programme as colleagues, ultimately helping the UK’s
National Space Programme to begin launching satellites into space. That
launch capability will be a first in continental Europe, and will offer
a host of benefits, enabling new markets and enlarging the UK’s share
of the global space economy.”