SpaceX is reportedly planning to build its own natural gas pipeline in Texas

View documents Reuters and Rio Grande Valley Business Journal are reportedly revealing that SpaceX will begin construction of a natural gas pipeline in Texas stretching eight miles from the launch site at the Port of Brownsville to the company’s Starbase. Construction of the pipeline will begin next month and is expected to be completed and launched by January 26. Reuters reports.

The 16-inch pipeline will carry natural gas directly to the Starbase so it can be processed there into liquid methane for the Starship. According to Reutersthe company filed engineering plans last summer with the U.S. Corps of Engineers to build an on-site liquefaction facility. SpaceX is currently approved by the FAA for up to 25 launches per year, although it has only launched Starship 12 times since its first flight in April 2023. Each launch requires about 630,000 gallons of liquid methane transported by hundreds of tanker trucks.

The potential construction of a new pipeline raises new environmental concerns for the area around Starbase, which includes sensitive wetland habitats. Reuters reports that ground records show SpaceX has been exploring drilling near the site and other parts of Texas.