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SpaceX’s reusable rockets snag two more launch contracts
SpaceX’s reusable Falcon 9 rocket has secured another two launch contracts, this time from longtime customer and prolific satellite communications provider SES.
In 2016, SES acquired satellite operator and communications provider O3B Networks, inheriting a network of 12 O3B satellites that it would later shepherd into a full 20-satellite constellation. Built by contractor Thales Alenia Space, the O3B spacecraft design was ironically quite similar to the Starlink satellites SpaceX would begin to field several years later, weighing around 700 kg (1540 lb) and each offering bandwidth of ~16 gigabits per second (Gbps).
The original O3B constellation was ultimately launched on five separate Russian Soyuz rockets arranged by Arianespace. Now, some 16 months after the final O3B launch, SES’ latest announcement confirms that SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rockets will launch the entirety of an upgraded constellation called O3B mPower – adding two more launches to the company’s busy manifest.
Compared to O3B, O3B mPower will be a major upgrade, beating the original medium Earth orbit (MEO; ~8000 km/5000 mi) constellation’s overall bandwidth by at least a factor of 3. SES has yet to reveal much technical detail about each spacecraft but the implication is that the overall constellation – currently expected to be 11 satellites – will add several terabits per second (Tbps) of global communications capacity.
SES (and O3B prior to acquisition) had already ordered seven ~17O3B mPower satellites from Boeing and selected SpaceX for launch services. Now, the company has purchased four more Boeing-built satellites, launch services from SpaceX, and insurance for an eye-watering ~$570 million – more than $140 million apiece. For reference, based on statements made by CEO Elon Musk in the last ~18 months, SpaceX may have built and launched nearly 600 operational Starlink satellites – each offering ~20 Gbps of bandwidth and far lower latency – for roughly the same sum, assuming ~$20 million per Falcon 9 launch, $300,000 per satellite, and at least $150 million for initial development.
Of course, for the money, SES will be getting a system that can do things SpaceX’s current generation of Starlink satellites can’t really compete with and will focus primarily on in-flight and maritime connectivity markets. Individual O3B mPower antenna beams will reportedly be capable of transmitting “multiple gigabits per second.”
Regardless, the strong, continued relationship between SES and SpaceX is not a huge surprise. SES has flown six times on Falcon 9 rockets and was both SpaceX’s first geostationary transfer orbit (GTO) launch customer in 2013 and the first company in history to launch on a flight-proven rocket booster in 2017. SES’ latest launch contracts ensure that that relationship is guaranteed to continue until 2024.
SpaceX is now scheduled to launch four separate O3B mPower missions, beginning with three three-satellite Falcon 9 launches in Q3 2021, Q1 2022, and H2 2022 and culminating (for now) with a two-satellite launch no earlier than (NET) H2 2024.
Check out Teslarati’s Marketplace! We offer Tesla accessories, including for the Tesla Cybertruck and Tesla Model 3.
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Tesla Energy has introduced the Powerwall Lease in conjunction with Tesla Electric, making the service available in Texas. This new option delivers whole-home backup power using two Powerwall units for a net monthly cost of $35 after credits, accompanied by a low fixed electricity rate.
Under the lease terms, customers pay a one-time order fee of $100. The base lease payment for the two Powerwalls is approximately $122 per month during the first year, subject to a 3 percent annual escalator thereafter. Enrollment in a qualifying Tesla Electric Backup plan or Virtual Power Plant plan provides an $87 monthly credit.
Powerwall Lease is now available with Tesla Electric in Texas
Whole-home backup for $35/month, with a low fixed electricity rate
– Two Powerwalls, $0 installation
– Storm Watch outage protection
– One app to manage it all pic.twitter.com/oTzqc6K3aF— Tesla Energy (@teslaenergy) August 13, 2026
This credit lowers the effective cost to roughly $35 per month plus applicable tax.
Installation of the standard system carries no additional charge. The package features Storm Watch for outage protection and allows complete management through a single Tesla application. The system supplies continuous whole-home backup capability.
The Powerwall system enables households to maintain electricity during severe storms that disrupt the utility grid. When outages occur, the batteries automatically provide seamless backup power to the home.
Tesla announces 100k Powerwalls are participating in Virtual Power Plants
Tesla Storm Watch monitors weather forecasts and ensures the units are fully charged ahead of anticipated severe weather events so that power remains available throughout the disruption, keeping lights, refrigeration, and other essential systems operating without interruption.
Availability is restricted to select Texas locations where retail electric choice exists. Participants must lease exactly two Powerwall units and maintain continuous enrollment with Tesla Electric. Solar panels cannot be included under this particular lease arrangement.
The monthly credit activates automatically once the system is installed, receives permission to operate, and enrollment is confirmed. To retain the credit, customers are required to stay enrolled in Tesla Electric and fulfill all program conditions.
Nonstandard installations that involve electrical upgrades or special permitting may lead to extra expenses and might impact eligibility for the credit, so be sure to check with either your installer or Tesla to ensure you will still qualify.
Elon Musk continues to tease the unveiling event for the Tesla Roadster, a continuing trend that has grown into a bigger game of “When” for fans who have been waiting years for the car to finally enter production.
A video shared on X of the Joe Rogan Experience podcast that Musk appeared on last year, teasing the Roadster unveiling, was shared once again on the social media platform. The poster said the Roadster event will be “unforgettable.”
Musk agreed:
Yes
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 12, 2026
The timing is interesting because just yesterday, Musk said that we will be getting flying cars, and for years, Tesla has hinted that it could develop a SpaceX cold gas thruster package that would help the car float or fly for a short period of time.
It would be reasonable to assume Tesla’s major delays with this unveiling event are likely caused by the company’s need to break the rules and push the envelope on nearly everything. Last July, Lars Moravy, Tesla’s VP of Vehicle Engineering, said:
“Roadster is definitely in development. We did talk about it last Sunday night. We are gearing up for a super cool demo. It’s going to be mind blowing. We showed Elon some cool demos last week of the tech we’ve been working on and he got a little excited.”
The latest updates that Tesla has given us are that the Roadster is in design development, and it did have several potential dates for an unveiling event this year, including April. It was then pushed to August.
However, there are no clues as to when Tesla will be ready, and fans are certainly getting frustrated with the delays.
For what it is worth, Franz von Holzhausen told Jay Leno this week that the event would be “very soon.”
We sure hope.
Lifestyle
Tesla’s driverless Cybercab just passed a big test with State Governor
Florida’s governor rode Tesla’s Cybercab at a closed test track and called the experience impressive.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis rode in a Tesla Cybercab on a closed test track this week and came away impressed, posting on X that the vehicle “successfully navigated all hazards — a kid running into the street, a crash with police stopping traffic, a Model S cutting us off, etc.” He called the ride “impressive.”
The stop was part of a broader event Monday at SunTrax, a 775 acre state owned proving ground in Auburndale that Florida built specifically to test autonomous and connected vehicles before they reach public roads. Standing next to a gold Cybercab, DeSantis described the car in plain terms: “You go in there and you just sit. You have a screen. There’s no steering wheel, no pedals. Clearly these things could be very beneficial.”
We took a ride on a robotaxi on the Suntrax course and it successfully navigated all hazards — a kid running into the street, a crash with police stopping traffic, a Model S cutting us off, etc.
Impressive! https://t.co/FVAkzFLz3r
— Ron DeSantis (@RonDeSantis) August 11, 2026
DeSantis paired the praise with a caveat that has followed autonomous vehicles since the category existed. “You don’t want to be in an autonomous vehicle and it drives you into a ditch. That would not be good,” he said, framing safety validation as the gate before wider deployment.
SunTrax, the 2.25 mile oval which the state calls the only high speed autonomous vehicle test track in the Southeast, can simulate rain, pedestrian crossings, hills and crowded urban conditions at highway speeds, letting companies push a car past what an early public rollout would risk. Tesla, Waymo and Beep all use the facility, and Florida’s regulatory approach, among the most permissive for autonomous vehicles in the country, doesn’t require a human operator inside a fully autonomous car.
Tesla has reason to want the blessing of Florida and states beyond, as the Cybercab entered volume production at Gigafactory Texas this spring and has since self certified as SAE Level 4 under Texas law. Public road testing so far has kept a safety monitor in the passenger seat, and Florida is where Tesla has been expanding its existing Model Y based Robotaxi service instead, adding Miami in July and then Orlando and Tampa two weeks later. A closed track endorsement from a sitting governor doesn’t change any of that, but it does put Tesla’s newest hardware in front of a state that has already shown it will move fast on rules.
Tesla launches Powerwall Lease for affordable home backup
Elon Musk teases Tesla Roadster unveiling once again
