Robots to take over Moffett: Google spends $1.2 billion on 60-year lease for historic airfield

Robots to take over Moffett: Google spends $1.2 billion on 60-year lease for historic airfield

Google will also spend more than $200 million to improve the property.

Search-engine giant Google has signed a long-term lease for NASA’s Moffett airfield through a Google subsidiary called Planetary Ventures LLC, The Associated Press reports. The company is expected to pay nearly $1.2 billion in rent over the next 60 years.

NASA said in a statement that the 60-year lease will save the space agency about $6.3 annually in maintenance and operation costs.

According to The Verge, Google will likely use Moffett airfield, which includes three hangars, an airfield flight operations building, two runways and a golf course, for projects involving robotics, aviation and space exploration.

“As NASA expands its presence in space, we are making strides to reduce our footprint here on Earth,” said NASA Administrator Charles Bolden. “We want to invest taxpayer resources in scientific discovery, technology development and space exploration – not in maintaining infrastructure we no longer need. Moffett Field plays an important role in the Bay Area and is poised to continue to do so through this lease arrangement.”

Planetary Ventures LLC also plans on spending more than $200 million to improve the property, including refurbishing and protecting historic Hangar One, rehabilitating historic Hangars Two and Three and building a museum for the public.

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