OREANDA-NEWS. At least since 2017, the Ukrainian enterprise Yuzhmash has been purchasing aluminum for rocket production in Russia. In at least one of the contracts, the aluminum purchased from Russia was intended for the production of the American Antares space rockets, follows from government procurement materials. The last contract was concluded on January 15, 2020.

In accordance with it, the Russian company Alfa-Metal, registered in Moscow, must supply 88724 kg of aluminum rolled metal (88.7 tons) to Dnepropetrovsk (the current name is Dnipro, the documents have the old name). The amount of the contract is 110 million rubles. Delivery must be completed by December 31st.

Yuzhmash has entered into similar contracts with a Russian company since 2017. The contract of 2020 doesn't indicate the purpose of the metal. However, the 2019 contract stipulates that it should be used for the manufacture of Taurus II launch vehicles by the American company Orbital.