SpaceX Considered to Develop Its Own Natural Gas Pipeline Infrastructure in Texas
An eight-mile pipeline is planned to supply fuel for Starship at the company’s Starbase.
Recent filings suggest that SpaceX is preparing to construct a natural gas pipeline in Texas, extending eight miles from the Port of Brownsville to its Starbase facility. Construction is slated to start next month, with completion targeted for January 26.
The 16-inch pipeline is intended to deliver natural gas directly to Starbase, where it will be converted into liquid methane for the Starship program. It has been reported that SpaceX submitted engineering plans last summer to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for a liquefaction facility on-site. Currently, the company has the Federal Aviation Administration’s approval for up to 25 launches a year, although it has only conducted 12 Starship flights since its initial launch in April 2023. Each launch necessitates around 630,000 gallons of liquid methane, which is typically moved by hundreds of tanker trucks.
The proposed pipeline’s construction has raised new environmental concerns for the surrounding area, which includes delicate wetland ecosystems. There are also indications that SpaceX has investigated drilling options near the Starbase site and in other regions of Texas.
