Canada is taking bold actions to strengthen its sovereign space capabilities and invest in the development of a strong, competitive Canadian space sector.
Today in Ottawa, the Honourable David J. McGuinty, Minister of National Defence, announced a 10-year, $20-million spaceport agreement has been signed with NordSpace to access the Atlantic Spaceport Complex in Newfoundland and Labrador, alongside other major new space-related capabilities and initiatives, bringing the total value of space-related contracts, grants and contributions announced this year to more than $3 billion.
Expansion of sovereign launch program
Sovereign access to space is increasingly essential to national security, economic competitiveness and the reliable delivery of critical space-based services.
The agreement with NordSpace, in addition to the 10-year agreement with Maritime Launch Services announced in March 2026, will provide the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) and its partners access to conduct launches and research and development activities.
Canadian-owned satellite telecommunications system
The Innovation for Defence Excellence and Security (IDEaS) program's Gateway to the Stars challenge is investing $17.9 million in projects to improve satellite connectivity. Through this challenge, Minister McGuinty announced that Canada is awarding a $4.7 million contract to Kepler Communications to develop optical inter-satellite communication networks to improve the speed and resilience of space-based communications, particularly in Canada's Arctic and other remote regions, supporting future CAF operations. Collectively, this work will also support objectives under the Northern Wide-Area Tracking and Continuous Horizon (NORTHWATCH) program by enhancing Canada's surveillance and threat detection capabilities across the Arctic.
The contract is for a two-year period with the aim to develop and test laser-based communication links that allow satellites to exchange data directly, enabling faster and more reliable space-based networks. The project will support the development and testing of this technology.
NATO STARLIFT membership
Minister McGuinty announced that as part of its commitment to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), Canada has joined the NATO STARLIFT initiative as a full member. STARLIFT is a NATO High Visibility Project that aims to develop a more resilient, responsive and cost-effective network of space launch capabilities, enabling Allies to launch assets at short notice from spaceports across the Alliance.
Developing Canada's skilled space sector workforce
As Canada's space capabilities continue to grow, we are investing in the people that will support Canada's space sector. To meet the demands of modern space operations, the CAF is establishing a dedicated Space Mission Operator occupation which will enable the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) to attract, train, and retain highly skilled personnel.
Recent Government of Canada investments are increasing demand for engineers, scientists, technicians, software developers and advanced manufacturing specialists across the country and are expected to support approximately 3,000 jobs annually.
To meet this growing demand for talent, the Department of National Defence (DND) is investing $1.2M over 2 years in the next generation of Canadian space professionals through Launch Canada and the IDEaS Space Rocketry Talent Development Initiative. Through student-led projects, competitions, hands-on training and early-stage research, the initiative is developing the highly qualified personnel needed to support Canada's future space workforce. By connecting students and emerging professionals with real-world aerospace and space projects, this investment will build a talent pipeline for Canadian organizations working across satellite communications, Earth observation, launch systems, space surveillance and other advanced space technologies.
