The Canadian Space Agency has allocated $65 million for a space car, as revealed by an internal audit. This represents over 40% of the total budget for moon exploration..“Approximately $65 million is allocated to developing a Canadian lunar rover,” said an Audit of the Lunar Exploration Accelerator Program. .“Approximately $20 million is allocated to a scientific instrument that will eventually be used on the moon.”.“Approximately $20 million is allocated to a contribution for a partner’s mission to return a sample from Mars,” wrote auditors. .“Approximately $31 million is awarded in contracts, grants and contributions to the space industry and academic community to increase the market potential of Canadian businesses.”.The total cost of the program is $150 million, with Agency intending to land a rover on the moon by 2026..Contracts to date have been awarded to researchers and suppliers in Winnipeg, Bolton, Brampton, Caledon, Cambridge, Chalk River, Edmonton, London, Markham, Montréal, Oakville, Ottawa, Quebec City and Sherbrooke..According to Blacklock’s Reporter, auditors cautioned about potential risks to taxpayers..“We found it difficult to identify the thought and decision-making process for integrating the corporate risk profile into the Lunar Exploration Accelerator Program activity planning,” said the report. .“We did not find any analysis documents showing how organizational risks were taken into consideration in decision making, namely for risk-taking to generate innovation and accept potential market failures.”.In 1962, Canada became the third nation to launch a satellite into space, the Alouette I, following Soviet Russia and the United States. However, federal funding for space initiatives has fluctuated over the years. .After the 2008 financial crisis, the Space Agency budget was drastically cut by 85%, and the $33.9 million funding for the Space Technology Research Program was eliminated..Three years ago, the Agency budgeted $300,000 for consultants to conduct a “business case and value proposition analysis” for moon exploration. .In recent submissions to the Commons Finance committee, advocates stated that the moon and asteroids have the potential to be mined for iron ore, nickel, and precious metals, which are found in significantly higher concentrations compared to those on Earth..“Canadian mining corporations would typically be entitled to a foreign tax credit under Canadian tax rules,” said a submission by Canadian Space Mining Corp., a Toronto promoter. .The Finance committee has been advised that mining the moon and asteroids should be classified as a “foreign operation” according to tax regulations.
