China's first offshore liquid rocket test platform to begin operations

China's first offshore test platform for launching and returning liquid-propelled rockets is nearing completion at Oriental Spaceport in Haiyang, Yantai, in east China's Shandong province. Located at China's only commercial offshore launch mother port, construction is expected to be completed and the facility will enter the test operation and rehearsal phase around February 5.

Around the Spring Festival in mid-February, the launch and return of the indigenously developed main commercial liquid-propellant rocket is planned. This test will be China's first offshore launch and return of a liquid-propelled rocket in the country's history.

The year 2026 marks the beginning of the 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-2030), during which „accelerating the building of a space superpower“ has been listed as a key national task for the first time.

To date, Oriental Spaceport has conducted 22 coastal launches, all with solid-propellant rockets. While these rockets offer high mobility and flexible launch options, they have a relatively limited payload capacity and cannot be recovered. In contrast, liquid-propelled rockets have a higher payload capacity and can be reused, significantly reducing the cost of deploying satellite constellations. For this reason, reusable liquid-propelled rockets have become the main thrust of China's commercial space sector.

As the only offshore launch homeport in China, Oriental Spaceport has so far sent 137 satellites into space.

CMG