{"id":22532,"date":"2025-11-19T23:10:30","date_gmt":"2025-11-19T23:10:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rbc.com\/en\/?post_type=rbc_tl&p=22532\/"},"modified":"2025-12-04T16:17:22","modified_gmt":"2025-12-04T16:17:22","slug":"a-higher-orbit-how-canada-can-build-and-finance-a-bolder-space-strategy","status":"publish","type":"rbc_tl","link":"https:\/\/www.rbc.com\/en\/thought-leadership\/space\/a-higher-orbit-how-canada-can-build-and-finance-a-bolder-space-strategy\/","title":{"rendered":"A Higher Orbit: How Canada can build and finance a bolder space strategy"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Executive Summary<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The global space economy is poised to nearly triple to US$1.8 trillion by 2035, <\/strong>making the value derived from orbital assets equivalent to that of some G20 economies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Canada has an opportunity to grow its space economy to $21 billion by 2035 <\/strong>\u2014 a four-fold increase.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

An estimated $12 billion in public and private capital is needed to spur this growth. <\/strong>Much of that can be leveraged through new procurement strategies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Canada currently ranks last in public spending among 10 OECD Space Forum members as a percentage of GDP.  <\/strong>At the same time, the Canadian space industry generates $5 billion in sales revenue, which is 25% less than it did in 2014.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Canada\u2019s total space budget is projected to increase 56% over the next decade. <\/strong>That includes a federal budget commitment of $180 million for launch capabilities, with two sites already under development in Atlantic Canada.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Canada can seize this moment by building a new space strategy around five key pillars: <\/strong>sovereignty, defence, technology, commercialization and climate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The U.S., China, Japan, and Germany provide critical lessons for Canada <\/strong>\u2014 especially through strategic procurement, state scale and finance, as well as technical excellence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Success depends on a more unified approach within government, procurement modernization, capital market activation, export market development and talent mobilization. <\/strong>These are interdependent levers but success requires simultaneous progress across all of them.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\n\n

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Overview<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019ve entered an ambitious new space age\u2014and Canada needs an ambitious new space strategy. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

What\u2019s at stake? Our sovereignty in a more divided world. Our prosperity in a new tech universe. And our relevance to allies when the \u201cfinal frontier\u201d is suddenly the next economic and strategic frontier.  <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The global space economy is poised to nearly triple from US$630 billion in 2023 to US$1.8 trillion by 20351<\/a><\/sup>, making the value derived from orbital assets equivalent to that of some G20 economies. This transformation is not merely an economic opportunity. There\u2019s a fundamental shift underway in how nations are mapping out their sovereignty and competitiveness, and it\u2019s increasingly through space.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Canada has much of what\u2019s needed to be a leader in this new age. When Jeremy Hansen heads to the moon next year, he\u2019ll be the first non-American to leave Earth\u2019s orbit. Our space researchers are widely seen as among the world\u2019s best (and for a lot more than the Canadarm). And our strong capabilities in the AI economy, and perhaps soon the quantum economy, puts us where the planetary puck is going. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately, too much of Canada\u2019s space ambition rests on past achievements and not enough on future commitments. And we\u2019re at risk of losing altitude just as the global space industry is taking off. As of 2025, Canada is one of the only space-faring nations that can\u2019t launch itself from its own soil even to low orbit. meanwhile, our digital lives increasingly flow through tiny satellites sent from Earth on American and European rockets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our private space sector is also nowhere near what Canada could support. The Canadian space industry generates $5 billion in sales revenue2<\/a><\/sup>\u201325% lower than 2014.3<\/a><\/sup> And our space GDP is down 13%, with productivity running about one-third lower than the U.S. space sector. If trends continue, we project negative annual sales growth of just 1% a year over the coming decade, with industry revenue falling to $4.5 billon by 2035. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then there\u2019s the challenge of government spending. Canada currently ranks last in public spending among 10 OECD Space Forum members as a percentage of GDP4<\/a><\/sup>.  In a decade that saw SpaceX transform the space economy, and the U.S., China, India and<\/em> Japan all land crafts on the moon, the Canadian Space Agency\u2019s budget fell <\/em>18% from 20155<\/a><\/sup>\u2014and at $414 million6<\/a><\/sup> is a fraction of the OECD average.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Government<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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\"Canada<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s starting to change, as Canada’s public space investments are again increasing. The total spending for Canada in space reached $549 million in 20247<\/a><\/sup>. The federal budget includes a commitment of roughly $180 million8<\/a><\/sup> for launch capabilities, with two spaceports under development (Atlantic Spaceport Complex and Maritime Launch) and several ambitious rocket projects (Canada Rocket Company, NordSpace, Reaction Dynamics). It was also announced that Canada will ramp up its investment in European Space Agency programs by $528.5 million, which will boost R&D for Canadian-made technology, and Canada is the only non-European country partnered with the European Space Agency. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Canada, the third nation in space after the Soviet Union and the U.S., also has some of the world\u2019s leading satellite and robotics firms, led by Telesat Lightspeed (with nearly 200 satellites planned for orbit over the next two years), Kepler Communications (the first in the world to use lasers to connect Earth and space) and MDA Space (ranked the fifth most innovative globally by Fast Company<\/em>). Plus, a new generation of innovators, including Mission Control and Canadensys. Our new NATO commitment of dramatically increased spending could spark a generational opportunity to invest in those companies, and many more, including through dual-use space capabilities.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\n\n

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Canada can seize this moment by building a space strategy around five essential pillars:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n