TIME Business Tech Google Leases NASAs Silicon Valley Airfield Crew members walk the Solar Impulse to its hangar following a test flight at Moffett Field in Mountain View, California April 19, 2013. Robert GalbraithReuters Google plans to use the sprawling facility for research and develop space and robot technology

With dreams of an increased footprint in space, NASA is cutting back on its Earthly properties.

The agency said Monday it will lease its Moffett Field airbase in Silicon Valley to a shell company owned by Google. The tech giant will pay $1.16 billion over the course of a 60-year lease, according to NASA.

Google plans to use the sprawling facility for research and testing in the areas of spaceships, robotics and other technologies.

Located on 1,000 acres in southern end of San Francisco Bay, the Moffett lease is expected to save NASA approximately $6.3 million annually in maintenance and operation costs, the agency said. The airfield home to NASA Ames Research Center, including an airfield, a golf course, office space and several giant hangers that once housed blimps.

As NASA expands its presence in space, we are making strides to reduce our footprint here on Earth, said NASA Administrator Charles Bolden in a statement. We want to invest taxpayer resources in scientific discovery, technology development and space exploration not in maintaining infrastructure we no longer need.

Moffett Field plays an important role in the Bay Area and is poised to continue to do so through this lease arrangement, he added.

In February, NASA had agreed to negotiate exclusively with Google to lease the property. The base is close to Googles headquarters in Mountain View, Calif., and its airfield is home to a fleet of private jets owned by Googles co-founders, Larry Page and Sergey Brin, along with executive chairman Eric Schmidt.

Google had previously signed a deal to develop a new office complex on 42 acres at Moffett Field. But last year, the company halted those plans, possibly to await an agreement to manage the entire facility.

Under the latest deal, Planetary Ventures, Googles real estate arm, is expected to pump $200 million in improvements to the property, including refurbishing a hangar and creating a facility for the public to explore the sites legacy and learn about Silicon Valley.

Continue reading here:

Google Leases NASAs Silicon Valley Airfield