The United States can’t continue to use “expensive” commercial space launch provider United Launch Alliance unless competition helps reduce launch costs, according to a key lawmaker.
“ULA, they do the best, (and) probably have the best launch operation in the world, but it’s also the most expensive and we can’t continue to move forward with such an expensive operation,” House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence Ranking Member Dutch Ruppersberger (D-Md.) told Defense Daily Tuesday.
Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics (AT&L) Frank Kendall authorized the Air Force in a Nov. 27 Acquisition Decision Memorandum (ADM) to no-compete a “block buy” of 36 Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV) “cores” to ULA over a span of five years while competing up to 14 cores to other companies. Kendall’s memo said the Air Force could sole-source those 14 cores to ULA if “competition is not viable at time of need.”
The ADM said contracts for the 14 competing cores could be awarded as early as fiscal year 2015 for missions that could be flown as early as FY ’17. Defense Department spokesman Air Force Maj. Eric Badger said Monday the 36 non-compete cores represent a total of 28 launches, including 24 single-core launches and four that require the three-core heavy-lift configuration of rocket. Badger said a core is the basic cylindrical unit of the rocket used to launch a payload into space.
Ruppersberger, along with fellow House intel committee member, Chairman Michael Rogers (R-Mich.), has expressed concern in the past that DoD would no-compete a five-year block buy of EELV launches, saying any EELV block buy beyond three years’ worth of launches would unnecessarily exclude competition by space launch industry rivals Orbital Sciences [ORB] and Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX), which are developing new space launch capabilities (Defense Daily, Oct. 2). EELV is an Air Force and DoD launch system program designed to ensure government access to space.
Ruppersberger said “it’s clearly progress” that DoD decided to allow competition for 14 launch cores, but he said he’s concerned that the Pentagon would allow the Air Force to no-compete 36 EELV launch cores to a company, ULA, that he said already has a backlog of 50 launches. The additional 36 no-compete launch cores, plus possibly an additional 14 more if ULA wins the competed cores, would mean 76 launches on ULA’s plate.
“The fact (DoD) has addressed the fact that competition is important, hopefully, will bring costs down,” Ruppersberger said. “But ULA, in general, we have to re-evaluate their costs, we have to bring them down for the benefit of our country.”
Badger said yesterday in a statement the intent of the ADM is to begin the process to control and reduce launch costs from ULA, the current provider.
“These improvements will maintain critical space system mission assurance for warfighters dependent on satellite systems, will help stabilize the rocket propulsion industrial base and will improve pricing and lower DoD’s launch costs both by allowing ULA to make economically efficient orders with their suppliers and spur the growth of competition for national security launches,” Badger said.
Orbital and SpaceX representatives welcomed the news of the 14 launch cores available for competition. Orbital spokesman Barron Beneski said yesterday the company expects its Antares two-stage launch vehicle by 2015 to have established a track record using NASA’s Commercial Orbit Transportation Services (COTS) and Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) contracts and have itself “essentially certified.”
SpaceX CEO and Chief Designer Elon Musk said Tuesday the Air Force should be commended for opening launches to new entrants and restoring competition to the EELV program, which he said benefits the taxpayer and provides the American warfighter with the best possible solution for true assured access to space.
ULA spokeswoman Jessica Rye Tuesday defended DoD’s strategy for procuring EELV cores, saying this ADM authorizes an acquisition strategy that takes advantage of Economic Order Quantity (EOQ) purchase options to offer the government significant savings while stabilizing the industrial base, securing reliable launch services and providing the government a range of options for the future. Rye said ULA also plans on bidding on the 14 launch cores up for competition.
Ruppersberger said he’s not opposed to the EOQ, or “block buy,” acquisition strategy.
“I’m in favor of block buy,” Ruppersberger said. “I think that brings costs down.”
ULA is a joint venture of Lockheed Martin [LMT] and Boeing [BA].