SpaceX pointed to support from the U.S. Export-Import Bank as critical in helping the space company compete against foreign, government-backed rocket builders.
U.S. space companies are hoping to get more help against foreign competitors such as China through financing from EXIM. "To-date, EXIM has been very supportive of SpaceX's effort to win international business and we're grateful for that ... because we are primarily competing against state-backed launch service providers," SpaceX commercial sales director Stephanie Bednarek said during a teleconference.