Dnipropetrovsk governor discuss Cyclone-4 project with Brazilian delegates

Head of Dnipropetrovsk Regional State Administration Oleksandr Vilkul has discussed on Friday with the Brazilian delegation lead by Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation of Brazil Marco Antonio Raupp the implementation of the Ukrainian-Brazilian project to create the Cyclone-4 rocket-space complex at Alcantara space centre and the construction a test facility for the rocket complex in Dnipropetrovsk, the regional state administration's press service reported.

The test complex built by Pivdenne Design Bureau and Dniprotiazhmash heavy engineering enterprise (both Dnipropetrovsk), is a full-size copy of the launch complex at Alcantara in Brazil.

According to Vilkul, the test complex was built in less than two years. This May, it started first tests of the Cyclone-4 component parts, in August the integrated tests of the Cyclone-4 will begin.

The regional governor said that as a result of the project to create the test centre, Dnipropetrovsk would become a space capital of Ukraine and get a full cycle of creating space rocket systems.

According to him, a complex for testing of ground-based units of space rockets was created in close proximity to major developers and manufacturers of these rockets.

Ukraine and Brazil signed an agreement in 2003 on long-term cooperation in constructing the Cyclone-4 space rocket complex at Brazil's Alcantara Space Center.

The construction of the launch center was started in autumn 2010: the area was cleared of trees, and service roads and a village for constructors were built.

The project costs are estimated at $488 million, with the two countries sharing the expenses fifty-fifty.

The first launch of the Cyclone 4 launch vehicle is scheduled for late 2013.

The financial issues of the project were discussed at a meeting of the Board of Directors of Alcantara Cyclone Space in Kyiv this week.

Ukraine and Brazil are currently working on the issues of the realization of potential of cooperation in the joint creation of new space vehicles.