Adds $8 Million In Incentive To Deal Expected To Be Announced Next Week

The Brevard County, FL commission has approved an $8 million grant for Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin commercial launch company to build and launch spacecraft near NASA's Kennedy Space Center.

The 4-1 vote last week boosts the total incentive package being offered to Blue Origin to about $40 million, according to the One America News Network.

Bezos is expected to be in Florida on September 15 to make a "major announcement" about the company. While there has been no official release of any information about "Project Panther", some leaked information indicates that Bezos' Blue Origin plans to build spacecraft at an industrial park adjacent to KSC, and launch from a pad leased by Space Florida at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

County Officials say that Bezos' stake in the project is about $200 million, and "Project Panther" will create 330 jobs in an area still struggling to recover from the end of the space shuttle program four years ago.

(Image from file. Blue Origin launches New Shepard rocket)

FMI: http://www.brevardcounty.us/countycommission/countycommissionershome, www.blueorigin.com