Taiwan’s first space launch facility is projected for completion in 2032. The country’s space agency is still navigating environmental reviews, local outreach and land acquisition before construction can start.
The Taiwan Space Agency, or TASA, last year announced a plan to develop an orbital launch site at Jiupeng in Pingtung County in southeastern Taiwan as part of the country’s push to send domestically manufactured rockets and satellites to space.
This week at the Taiwan International Assembly of Space Science, Technology, and Industry expo, commonly known as TASTI, a TASA senior figure familiar with the project told Domino Theory that they are still handling issues in the pre-construction phase.
“Our goal is in next year’s Q1 or Q2, we can obtain the environmental impact assessment permit,” the source said.
The three key environmental concerns are noise, vibration and air pollution. The Jiupeng site is directly adjacent to Kenting National Park, a much loved coastal nature area.
TASA operates under Taiwan’s National Science and Technology Council, which oversees the government’s science and technology policy. Because the council makes the political decisions related to the launch center, the TASA employee who spoke to us was not comfortable to be named while explaining them.
Aside from the environmental assessment, a second remaining issue before construction can start is community relations. Many Jiupeng residents are from Taiwanese Indigenous groups. The TASA figure said they are in active communication with local tribes. The launch center is intended to create jobs for local people.
The final unresolved question concerns land acquisition. Some 90% of the site is already publicly owned land. The remaining 10%, approximately two hectares, needs to be acquired. TASA will have to negotiate with the owners of this land, the source said, “We need to buy this land from them, and even later help them with some resettlement plans. We will only start doing these things next year.”
Although the launch site is scheduled to be ready for 2032, TASA figures acknowledged that with delays this could slip by at least a year.
The Jiupeng site is a very austere location, far from Taiwan’s population centers and major roads. This presents access challenges. In particular, Taiwan’s domestic launch vehicle, still early in development, will be manufactured in a new space research and testing facility in Shalun, Tainan, on the other side of the island, and transported to the launch center by road.
Part of the route leading to Jiupeng must be upgraded to allow the rocket to pass. This work will be tailored to the length of the first stage of the rocket, the TASA employee said, which is expected to be 17 meters long. In the future, if Taiwan builds a larger rocket, the abandoned harbor in Jiupeng might become an alternative option.
Pingtung County wants to eventually see regular commercial launches, according to a local government representative who gave her English name as Jade. The county sees the potential for tourism and festivals to watch launches, but said they have not done a detailed economic analysis of this.
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