Cost of operating ISS Russian segment around 35 bln rubles per year - Roscosmos

MOSCOW. April 10 (Interfax) - The average annual cost of operating the International Space Station (ISS)'s Russian segment is close to 35 billion rubles, Roscosmos First Deputy General Director Andrei Yelchaninov said in an interview with Interfax.

"The average annual cost of operating the Russian segment of the ISS, including the cost of constructing and launching rockets, stands at roughly 35 billion rubles," Yelchaninov said.

"The amount of work to keep the station serviceable has obviously been growing in our overall expenses, but for now, it does not increase the total cost of operating the Russian segment, as it is levelled out by the optimization of other expenses," he said.

Roscosmos said on April 6 that it had proposed to the Russian government that the operation of the ISS's Russian segment be continued until 2028.

The decision was discussed and approved by the Roscosmos Scientific and Technical Board on February 21 and by the state commission on March 24, it said.

Energia General Designer for Manned Spacecraft Vladimir Solovyov said at the time that Russian specialists had done a lot over the past two years to repair the ISS's Russian segment, and that the segment could continue to be used until 2028.