The NT’s Northern Land Council (NLC) argued it had “engaged proactively” with ELA to reach a deal to expand its Arnhem Space Centre but added the company had attempted to “circumvent sacred sites protection requirements”.
“Our people will not be pushed into cutting corners for outside business timelines, nor can we jeopardise cultural obligations, our Country, or the hard-won Land Rights of our people,” said NLC chair Matthew Ryan.
The rebuttal comes after ELA on Monday quietly announced it would shift its spaceport to a new site at Cape York in Queensland, which it blamed on the Northern Land Council for not finalising a lease.
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However, the NLC said in response that ELA had provided “inaccurate, unrealistic timelines” and “unfairly blamed the NLC for delays as the reason for their decision”.
“The NLC has engaged proactively and positively to facilitate a substantial, swift and, most crucially, safe agreement being made between ASC and Traditional Owners,” it stated.
“The NLC, under its statutory obligations, is required to facilitate Section 19 Land Use Agreements between Aboriginal people and entities wishing to conduct business on their land, across the Top End of the NT.
“Since September 2023, there have been ongoing negotiations to set the terms of an agreement to expand ASC, located on the Arnhem Land Aboriginal Land Trust, without resolution.
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“The NLC has consistently requested essential information and terms to be provided, so that it could facilitate informative consultations with all Traditional Owners affected, including progressing the work of independent expert consultants.
“The NLC highlights that these ASC negotiations have included further complications from ELA, such as attempts to circumvent sacred sites protection requirements, breaches of previous agreement conditions, requiring confidentiality agreements, and significantly delaying responses to crucial correspondence.”
The organisation – responsible for helping Aboriginal people in the Top End of the Northern Territory acquire and manage their traditional lands – added it acknowledged the opportunities the spaceport could present.
“For this reason, the NLC prioritised the initial agreement to establish the ASC, followed by the processing of this expansion agreement, and subsequently addressing complications as they have arisen,” it continued.
“However, the NLC takes its responsibility to obtain free, prior and informed consent from all affected parties seriously when it comes to any business on Aboriginal Lands.
“We facilitate a thorough system, supporting the effective review and processing of all agreement applications, and can only progress applications when all key components are received.”
NLC chair Ryan said separately the organisation was “very disappointed with how ELA has handled this” and argued ELA was “working behind-the-scenes with Queensland – where they don’t have the Aboriginal Land Rights Act to make sure Aboriginal Lands are respected and protected”.
The response came after ELA strongly blamed the Northern Land Council for the decision to move states, arguing the lease process had been in progress for nearly three years and claiming the organization failed to meet its own deadline.
“Despite desperate appeals from ELA, the Northern Territory Chief Minister’s Department, and the Gumatj Corporation since February 2024, the NLC would not issue a Head Lease or provide any official reasons for the delays,” ELA said.
“The Gumatj are ELA’s direct landlord for the existing site and are the traditional owners and operators of the adjacent and disused bauxite mine on the Gove Peninsula, the site that ELA had requested for the spaceport expansion.
“The continued delays from the NLC have made the existence of the spaceport in the Northern Territory challenging, and the most recent delay to late 2025 to allow consultation with traditional owner groups had the potential to put ELA in breach of its contractual obligations with launch clients and jeopardised a previously secured major funding round.”
Separately, it’s not known how a move from NT to Queensland would affect ELA’s current client contracts at its original site, which include two long-term tenants or any permits signed off by the Australian Space Agency.
A potential move would also make it a direct competitor to Space Centre Australia, the planned spaceport in Cape York that recently announced Scott Morrison as its new chairman.
Adam Thorn
Adam is a journalist who has worked for more than 40 prestigious media brands in the UK and Australia. Since 2005, his varied career has included stints as a reporter, copy editor, feature writer and editor for publications as diverse as Fleet Street newspaper The Sunday Times, fashion bible Jones, media and marketing website Mumbrella as well as lifestyle magazines such as GQ, Woman’s Weekly, Men’s Health and Loaded. He joined Momentum Media in early 2020 and currently writes for Australian Aviation and World of Aviation.
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