St. Petersburg, June 6, 2019 – The Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), a Russia’s sovereign wealth fund, in partnership with Middle East investors, GK Launch Services company and with the support of Roscosmos State Corporation, announces an investment of $87 million in upgrading the infrastructure of the Baikonur Cosmodrome. The relevant documents have been signed today at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum.
The project intends to upgrade Launch Site 1 (Gagarin’s Start) of the Cosmodrome with its following operation for Soyuz-2 rocket launches.
The investments of RDIF and partners will allow renovating of the ground infrastructure of the largest spaceport in the world, increasing the competitiveness of the Russian space industry in the global launch services market, and commercializing the best domestic space technologies.
Kirill Dmitriev, RDIF Chief Executive Officer, said:
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The Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) was created in June 2011 to co-invest alongside top global financial and strategic investors, acting as a catalyst for direct investment in Russia. As of today, RDIF has gained successful experience in more than 70 joint projects with foreign partners, with a total volume of over 1.5 trillion rubles, covering 95% of Russia’s regions. There are over 700,000 employees in the RDIF portfolio companies which revenue amounts to 5% of Russia’s GDP. RDIF has established joint strategic partnerships with leading international co-investors from over 15 countries, totaling more than $40 billion. For more information, please visit: www.rdif.ru
ROSCOSMOS is a State Corporation that was established in August 2015 to oversee and implement a comprehensive reform of the Russian space industry. ROSCOSMOS ensures the implementation of the Russian government’s space program and its legal regulation. ROSCOSMOS also places orders for the development, manufacture and supply of space equipment and space infrastructure facilities. The state corporation is responsible for international space cooperation and tasked with setting the stage for the further application of space activities outputs in the social and economic development of Russia.
GK Launch Services is an operator of commercial launches. The company was established by the decision of ROSCOSMOS and is authorized to conclude and perform commercial contracts for satellite launches with the use of Soyuz-2 family launch vehicles from the Russian launch sites.
The project intends to upgrade Launch Site 1 (Gagarin’s Start) of the Cosmodrome with its following operation for Soyuz-2 rocket launches.
The investments of RDIF and partners will allow renovating of the ground infrastructure of the largest spaceport in the world, increasing the competitiveness of the Russian space industry in the global launch services market, and commercializing the best domestic space technologies.
Kirill Dmitriev, RDIF Chief Executive Officer, said:
“The modernization of the Baikonur Cosmodrome will make an important contribution to the development of the domestic space industry, thus stimulating the growth in the number of launches and attracting new customers of such services in the future. RDIF entices the major partners from the Middle East into the upgrading, which reflects the interest in such projects not only in our country, but also abroad. Outer space gives great scope for new discoveries, while creating opportunities for new partnerships on Earth.”
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The Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) was created in June 2011 to co-invest alongside top global financial and strategic investors, acting as a catalyst for direct investment in Russia. As of today, RDIF has gained successful experience in more than 70 joint projects with foreign partners, with a total volume of over 1.5 trillion rubles, covering 95% of Russia’s regions. There are over 700,000 employees in the RDIF portfolio companies which revenue amounts to 5% of Russia’s GDP. RDIF has established joint strategic partnerships with leading international co-investors from over 15 countries, totaling more than $40 billion. For more information, please visit: www.rdif.ru
ROSCOSMOS is a State Corporation that was established in August 2015 to oversee and implement a comprehensive reform of the Russian space industry. ROSCOSMOS ensures the implementation of the Russian government’s space program and its legal regulation. ROSCOSMOS also places orders for the development, manufacture and supply of space equipment and space infrastructure facilities. The state corporation is responsible for international space cooperation and tasked with setting the stage for the further application of space activities outputs in the social and economic development of Russia.
GK Launch Services is an operator of commercial launches. The company was established by the decision of ROSCOSMOS and is authorized to conclude and perform commercial contracts for satellite launches with the use of Soyuz-2 family launch vehicles from the Russian launch sites.
