The Orion Center Could Bring 2,500 Jobs to Albuquerque

Rendering of the proposed Orion Center, a high-tech development in Albuquerque projected to bring 2,500 high-paying jobs to the area.r

The Orion Center Could Bring 2,500 Jobs to Albuquerque

Dominating this week’s Albuquerque business news is The Orion Center, a proposed satellite assembling and testing plant. The major multi-million-dollar deal is currently in negotiations between the Theia Group Inc. and the city. Current plans call for the campus hosting 1,000 workers with plans to ultimately grow to 2,500.

“The Orion Center has the potential to be a game-changing partnership for our city’s aerospace and tech sector,” Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller said in a statement last November. “This development could be a massive job creator for our city, providing a boost to our economy and securing our role in the booming space industry.”

Here are the highlights.

What: The Orion Center, a proposed campus comprising 4.1 million square feet of improvements on 114.5-acre site to assemble and test satellites.

Who: Theia Group Inc. (TGI), a telecommunications and satellite company headquartered in D.C. that, according to its website, is “building the world’s first satellite constellation designed to create the only continuously-updated, real-time, digital representation of every physical activity, process, and object on earth.”

Group Orion, a subsidiary of TGI, filed for a commercial building permit at the proposed site of the development, seeking approval for “foundation and underground tunnels” as part of a 213,000 square foot facility on Girard Blvd. SE, according to Albuquerque Business First (March 16, 2021).

Where: a 114.5-acre site adjacent to the Albuquerque International Sunport, designated as the city’s “Aviation Center of Excellence.”

Status: Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller sent the deal document to the City Council earlier this week. Pending approval.

When: June 1st is currently marked as the agreement’s commencement date. The initial term is for 30 years with two ten-year options.

For more details, check out Albuquerque Journal’s ”Aerospace deal could generate 2,500 jobs.”