S7 Group will engage in space industry

S7 Group signed a contract with a group of SEA Launch companies on the purchase of the Marine Start Cosmodrome. The company plans to start launching missiles in 2018. According to the general director of the company Vladislav Filev, the space industry is an interesting direction of business, which has long -term prospects.

The subject of the transaction is the SEA Launch Commander, the ODYSSEY platform with the equipment of the missile segment installed on them, and ground equipment in the base port

Long Beach

and the trademark of Sea Launch, the message said

press service

Company.

Sea Launch ("sea start") - a floating cosmodrome for launching missiles, as well as the international consortium of the operating of the cosmodrome. The company was created in 1995, among its founders were Boeing, the Russian RSC Energia, the Norwegian shipbuilding enterprise Aker Solutions, the Ukrainian design bureau of Yuzhnoye and South Mash. The complex is designed to launch spacecraft for various purposes from the mobile starting platform. The start point is located in the equatorial zone of the Pacific Ocean, where the best conditions for launch. The first launch from the platform was carried out in 1999.

“It is planned to withdraw the complex from conservation and start the launch activity 18 months after the approval of the transaction - approximately at the end of 2018,” said the plans of the S7 Group, Vladislav Filev. - We expect that without large investments in the modernization of Sea Launch we can make up to 70 launches for 15 years. Our approach to doing business is radically different from many companies - we will not sell promises, we will only sell launches on ready -made

launch vehicles

. First rockets, and only then - the buyer. "

The transaction will be closed after receiving the approval of the US authorities and signing a number of contracts. Tentatively, it will take 6 months.

S7 Group also signed an agreement on cooperation with the RSC "Energia". Companies will work together to resume the operation of the complex. RSC Energia will provide engineering support and assistance in organizing launches, as well as in systemic integration.

“We are very glad that we signed this contract. A long way has been traveled to structuring the transaction and its implementation. The project is quite complicated, but S7 Group has new approaches to the organization of business, and I am sure that with our support they will be able to make the project successful, ”said Vladimir Solntsev, CEO of RSC Energia.

The joint activities of the S7 Group and the RSC “Energia” will not be limited to launch services and the “sea start”, but involves the creation of transport infrastructure in space.

S7 Group is the largest private aviation holding of Russia. The holding, in particular, includes S7 Airlines. The airline has a wide route network built on the basis of air transport units in Moscow (Domodedovo) and Novosibirsk (Tolmachevo). S7 Airlines performs regular flights in 145 directions in 27 countries. According to the results of 2015, S7 Airlines transported more than 10.6 million passengers. S7 Group shareholders also own aircraft maintenance holding - engineering.