Artist’s rendition of ULA’s Vulcan Centaur rocket. Photo: ULA.

Blue Origin has won a major contract award from United Launch Alliance (ULA) to produce and deliver a first-stage engine for ULA’s new Vulcan rocket, according to sources referenced in a story published by the Wall Street Journal and then confirmed by the Washington Post.

Wall Street Journal writers Andy Pasztor and Doug Cameron reported that Blue Origin planned to announce the contract on Thursday, September 27. In their story, they wrote that the new contract builds on a partnership between the two companies in 2014. “[Blue Origin] plans to use the same engines to power its own heavy-lift launcher, called New Glenn, which is currently under development. The Vulcan rocket’s maiden flight is slated for 2020, but many industry experts expect that deadline to be extended; regular operations could start before the middle of the next decade. Even if everything goes smoothly, testing and final certification of the New Glenn booster is also expected to take roughly that long,” the Wall Street Journal reported.

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