SpaceX will spend $5 billion or more on the Starship spacecraft and launch the infrastructure by the end of this year, according to court minutes and comments from a company executive. SpaceX filed a petition in federal district court for the District of Columbia on May 19 to be included as a defendant in a lawsuit filed by various environmental and Native American groups against the Federal Aviation Administration on May 1. The lawsuit alleges that the FAA improperly conducted an environmental review of Starship, which SpaceX launched from Boca Chica, Texas.

In the company’s filing, known as an intervention request, SpaceX claimed it was affected by a lawsuit aimed at revoking an existing FAA-issued launch license for Starship/Super Heavy orbital launches from Boca Chica, alleging that the FAA violated environmental laws. and rules in the licensing process. SpaceX said that if the plaintiffs win the lawsuit, “the FAA’s decision could be overturned and further licensing of the Starship/Super Heavy program could be significantly delayed, which would severely damage SpaceX’s business.”

To support this argument, the company added a statement from SpaceX chief financial officer Bret Johnsen. He said that if the plaintiffs win, the company’s ability to generate revenue from Starship launches for both NASA and commercial customers will be “significantly delayed and compromised.”

Since the FAA’s “decision record” in 2014 that allowed SpaceX to develop launchers (originally for the Falcon family of launch vehicles) in Boca Chica, “SpaceX has invested more than $3 billion in the development of the Boca Chica launch facility and launch. system Starship/Super Heavy”.

The statement makes no mention of investments between the launch vehicle itself and infrastructure. SpaceX CEO Elon Musk predicted the company would spend about $2 billion on Starship this year during an online discussion on Twitter, which he also owns, on April 29.

“This year it will probably be a few billion dollars or two billion dollars just for Starship,” he said, adding that he will not have to raise funds to finance the business. In that speech, he said he expects Starship to launch four or five more times this year, and that the company would be “surprised” if it doesn’t reach orbit by the end of the year.

However, this program depends on both the technical progress SpaceX has made in repairing the damaged launch pad and preparing the next vehicle for flight (Musk is known for making wishfull programs) and the outcome of the case.

In a statement, Johnsen detailed the consequences of delays in launches due to the lawsuit. This includes milestone payments of nearly $1 billion for NASA’s first orbital launch-related Human Landing System award, and next steps that include showing rocket fuel transfer in space, an unmanned moon landing, and a crewed landing. Neither the company nor SpaceX has previously set a payment plan for the $2.9 billion award they have given to develop the Starship lander for the Artemis 3 mission.

He also said SpaceX has invested billions in the Starlink broadband satellite group and will suffer if it cannot launch large “V2” satellites that require Starship. “Hundreds of thousands of people” have invested in the service, he said, but are waiting until these larger satellites are launched before they have enough power to serve them.

On a smaller scale, he said, SpaceX has offered Starship/Super Heavy to NASA’s Venture-Class Dedicated and Rideshare (VADR) Acquisition Contract for small satellite launches. The company estimates that VADR generates at least $10 million in annual revenue for the company, which is a small fraction of a single commercial Falcon 9 launch. SpaceX’s proposal to intervene is one of several updates since the lawsuit was filed. The court has given until July 1 for the FAA’s “response”.