SpaceX may face $15,000 port fee for booster return

Update: Wednesday, June 22 at 9:10 a.m.

Port Canaveral Chief Executive Officer John Murray this morning pulled from the Canaveral Port Authority agenda a proposal to charge SpaceX a cargo tariff fee of $15,000 when it brings a booster back to port.

Murray said that Port Canaveral has a good relationship with SpaceX, and there is no need to consider the item today.

SpaceX had indicated this week it had concerns about the proposed charge.

Port and SpaceX officials are scheduled to meet privately to discuss various issues, Murray said.

Check floridatoday.com later today for updates.

Original report

Port Canaveral is considering charging SpaceX $15,000 every time the company brings one of its rocket boosters to the port after it successfully lands on a drone ship in the Atlantic.

Port staff has proposed a new cargo wharfage charge for aerospace and aircraft items that initially would apply to SpaceX, which has set a goal of being able to return and reuse the first stage of its Falcon 9 rocket. Canaveral Port Authority commissioners will consider the staff proposal on Wednesday

SpaceX has successfully landed three boosters on the drone ship so far, and brought them back through the port.

"We view their cargo passing over our dock just like any other cargo passing our dock," Port Canaveral Chief Executive Officer John Murray said. "We're not looking at this as an adversarial relationship. It's no different than anything else coming across the dock. You have to pay for use of port facilities. That's how a port makes its money."

But SpaceX is not happy with the proposed fee.

“The proposed wharfage fee is 14 times higher than what any other business is being charged for using port facilities," SpaceX spokesman John Taylor said in an email to FLORIDA TODAY. "Port Canaveral is an important partner in our recovery operations. But we expect fees to be fair and reflect our actual use of the port. We’re looking forward to participating in the meeting later this week.”

Port Canaveral and its cargo partner, GT USA, provide dockage services to SpaceX's drone ship.

The SpaceX booster is designed to land on the platform while the drone ship is positioned hundreds of miles offshore in the Atlantic Ocean. The booster then is transported on the drone ship to Port Canaveral. After it reaches port, the booster is removed from the drone platform, then transported by truck to a hangar at Kennedy Space Center.

The port's current tariff — a document that amounts to a price list for the port's cargo and cruise operations — does not include cargo wharfage rates for aerospace and aircraft items.

SpaceX lands fourth booster after successful Falcon 9 launch

In a memo to port commissioners, Rodger   Rees, the port's deputy executive director and chief financial officer, wrote: "Due to the heavy weight and the effect of this weight on the port's berths, staff is recommending that the tariff be expanded to include a wharfage charges category for aerospace/aircraft items."

Port staff is recommending a charge of $500 a ton or $15,000 per item — whichever is greater.

"Staff understands that the current Falcon first stage weighs approximately 30 tons when it arrives in the port on the drone ship," Rees wrote. "Under this weight, it is anticipated that each time the rocket stage is transported over the berth, a charge of $15,000 will be assessed and collected from the owner of the item."

Murray said the recommended fee is based on research of what other ports charge for oversized items.

Murray noted that, while having the SpaceX boosters return to Port Canaveral is "kind of a cool thing" and attracts public interest from people wanting to view the booster, it also presents special logistical and security issues for the port.

"They've got a whole process" for moving the booster from the drone ship to the ground transportation vehicle, Murray said.

Leaning after landing, SpaceX booster returns to port

Additionally, Murray said, the booster transfers have caused minor dock and fence damage to the port's North Cargo Pier 6 area. Plus, a special SpaceX crane used to remove the booster from the ship takes up space in the cargo pier area, Murray said.

Port and SpaceX officials have been in discussion about the proposed charge, Murray said.

"We're looking forward to working with them," Murray said.

Murray said he has not heard any initial concerns from port commissioners about the proposed charge.

Rees said that, while SpaceX, a privately owned, California-based space transport services company, could be the first company affected by this proposal, it's not likely to be the only one.

"As new aerospace companies relocate to the Space Coast, it is anticipated that the port will need to accommodate items of a similar nature in the future, and will retain the right to negotiate these future charges, if needed," Rees said in his memo.

Contact Berman at 321-242-3649 or dberman@floridatoday.com. Follow him on Twitter @ByDaveBerman and on Facebook at facebook.com/dave.berman.54

Port Authority meeting

The Canaveral Port Authority plans to discuss the proposed new cargo wharfage fees for aerospace and aircraft items when it meets at 9 a.m. Wednesday at the Canaveral Port Authority Maritime Center Commission Chambers, 445 Challenger Road, Port Canaveral.