Borisov announced the allocation of funding for the Russian orbital station

2023-10-27 05:57:44

Following a meeting on the development of the space industry with Russian President Vladimir Putin, instructions were given to approve the project for the creation of the Russian Orbital Station (ROS), and funding was allocated for it. This was announced by the head of Roscosmos, Yuri Borisov.

“Instructions were given to approve the federal project for the manned program, and, in fact, for the creation of the Russian orbital station. Funding has been allocated. The main indicators for this project have been determined. Therefore, in this regard, we are, of course, very pleased,” he said (quote according to TASS).

Borisov called the continuation of the Russian manned program “an urgent problem.” He added that the service life of the ISS will end by 2030, so Russia needs to begin work on a project for its own station no later than 2024. Otherwise, “the ISS will no longer exist, and the Russian station will not exist yet,” explained the head of the state corporation.

A meeting on the development of the space industry was held on October 26. In his opening speech, Putin named ROS is the future “Russian outpost for the study and conquest of the Universe.” According to him, the station must ensure the interests of the Russian Federation both in the security and economic spheres, and also take into account “all the advanced achievements of science and technology.” He called for decisions on this project to be made quickly.

Back in July 2022, Borisov reported to the president about Roscosmos’ plans to withdraw from the ISS project and the development of ROS. Its construction is planned for 2027–2032. Borisov previously said that Russia should withdraw from the ISS project at the moment when the deployment of ROS begins. In October, he clarified that the Russian Federation’s participation in the ISS project after 2028 will depend on the technical condition of the station.

Roscosmos presented the model of the ROS in July 2022 at the Army-2022 forum. According to Interfax, the preliminary cost of building a new space station was estimated at 600 billion rubles. The exact amount will be announced after the completion of the preliminary design.