MOSCOW. Sept 23 (Interfax) - Roscosmos will invest 1.7 billion rubles in research and development associated with its lunar program, according to information from the public procurement website.
According to the website, Roscosmos has announced a tender with the theme "Applied Studies of Problems Related to Piloted Flights to the Moon and Development of Key Elements and Technologies, including Medical and Biological Ones, to Ensure the Safe Presence and Work of Cosmonauts in the Lunar Orbit and on the Lunar Surface as a Result of Work Scheduled for 2022-2025."
The project has a value of 1.7 billion rubles.
Roscosmos Executive Director for Science Alexander Bloshenko told Interfax on May 22 that the lunar program based on the Yenisei super-heavy launch vehicle would cost about 1.7 trillion rubles, including 900 billion rubles for the development of the payload and spaceships.
The payload consists of a number of Oryol spaceships, a lunar lander, lunar rovers, lunar spacesuits, scientific equipment, and other kinds of hardware, Bloshenko said.
It will cost 400 billion rubles to take people to the Moon on Angara rockets, excluding the cost of payload delivery, he said.
Roscosmos said on March 9 that Russia and China had signed a memorandum on building an international lunar research station.
Roscosmos said in January that Russia had quit the U.S. lunar project Gateway.
Head of Roscosmos Dmitry Rogozin said on Twitter on October 19, 2020 that Roscosmos and the China National Space Administration had held a videoconference on bilateral cooperation, "including the lunar research program."
Rogozin said in July 2020 that negotiations on building a joint lunar base were being conducted with China. He noted that other countries, among them the United States, might be invited to join the project.