Strategic Bluffing

The meeting officially began.

Standing at the podium, the ministry spokesperson read out the main points of the meeting.

Lu Zhou did not have to wait long before he heard the part he was curious about.

First came funding: the nation's annual space program budget would increase from 14 billion to 30 billion RMB.

This part had little to do with private companies. The benefits would mainly go to state-owned enterprises.

At present, although private companies had developed some launch technologies of their own, equipment such as the high-thrust rockets used in the Lunar Landing Project was another matter. Even with the relevant policy restrictions lifted, most private companies lacked the capital and nerve to get involved, and were unlikely to undertake the thankless task of building up those technological reserves.

That was precisely why most people in the room looked rather uninterested as the spokesperson explained the first policy.

But when the spokesperson reached the second policy, everyone perked up.

To promote the development of the space industry and the Lunar Landing Project, companies investing in domestic space ventures would receive tax concessions on their other domestic operations.

Simply put, if a company spent thirty million launching a satellite, it could receive thirty million in tax relief on its parent company's other operations, provided the launch contractor was a company based in Hua Nation and the launch took place within Hua Nation.

Even for major taxpayers such as Tencent and Alibaba, which paid a hundred million a day in taxes, the incentive was considerable.

They already needed satellite launches for their businesses, and now the government had effectively waived their entire launch costs through tax relief. Although this was not a direct cash subsidy, it was hardly any different.

As the spokesperson explained the second policy, Lu Zhou could