11 September 2026 Rocket Lab filed a formal protest with the US Government Accountability Office (GAO) regarding NASA's decision to award Blue Origin a contract worth 700 million US dollars to create the Mars Telecommunications Network (MTN).
1 September 2026 of 2018, NASA chose Blue Origin to build and deliver to 31 December 2028 year of one spacecraft to communicate with Mars based on the Blue Ring design. Rocket Lab is appealing the decision, affirming, that it is contrary to the eligibility rules established by Congress, and the technical evaluation of its proposal by management characterizes it
as "punitive" and erroneous. Filing a protest automatically suspends Blue Origin's contract pending the GAO's review, decision by which is expected during 100 days - until mid-December 2026 year.
Despite the legal and procedural challenge, Rocket Lab management has publicly downplayed the impact of the loss of the NASA contract on the company's overall financial health. Emphasis is placed on diversified sources of income, in particular, commercial launches of small satellites, the development of the Neutron rocket and the expansion of contracts in the field of space systems (solar cells and hardware components), which reduces reliance on individual NASA deep space contracts. Investors' attention remains focused on key milestones, such as the first delivery of the launch pad for the Neutron rocket, despite near-term contract uncertainty and protest-related stock volatility.
Source: https://spacenews.com