WA is still in the mix for a big role in the new national space agency as Innovation Minister Michaelia Cash officially launches the new body in Perth today.

Senator Cash will launch Australia’s first space agency at the offices of oil and gas giant Woodside, which has been working with NASA’s robotics technology to develop new applications useful under the sea and in the remote and harsh environments in which the company operates.

Last week’s Federal Budget allocated $26 million to underpin the agency over its first four years of operations and Senator Cash said the money would help it work with academics and industry to grow the Australian space industry.

“We have an extraordinary opportunity to increase our share of the growing global space economy,” Senator Cash said.

“Space technologies are not just about taking people to the moon, they open up opportunities for many industries, including communications, agriculture, mining, oil and gas.”

Former CSIRO boss Megan Clark will head the agency and starts work on July 1. The agency will initially be based in Canberra, but there are plans to find a permanent home within six months.

WA’s expertise in the sector — including the European Space Agency’s Deep Space Antenna at New Norcia, an integral part of the multibillion-dollar Square Kilometre Array in the Murchison, substantial defence space facilities in the State’s north, and strong space programs at WA universities — is expected to make a case for the agency to have a presence in WA.

WA companies and researchers looking at opportunities in the sector would also have access to a $15 million innovation fund dedicated to kick-starting involvement in international missions and projects, Senator Cash said.

WA Science Minister Dave Kelly said the Federal Budget had missed an opportunity to increase the sector in WA by leaving out any commitment to backing the European Space Agency’s plan to double the size of its New Norcia ground station.