State Defense Order 2011 Executed by 96.3%

17.05.2012 Russian defense industry has executed state order for 2011 by 96.3%, reported Russian Government on May 16.

"Product lineup and quantity differ fr om specifications set up initially", reports RIA Novosti citing the government's report.

Volume of Russian defense order in 2011 was RUR 750 bln, which is 1.5 times as much as in 2010.

According to Vzglyad, on Tuesday Russian parliament discussed draft law on state defense order.

That document is to replace the previous law dated 1995; since that time legislative acts related to that area have met "significant progress".

The law will liquidate "gaps in legal regulation related to forming, placing, and implementation of state defense order". These specific things are based on "lim ited negotiability and standardization of military products, and specific nature of defense industry as an economy sector".

What is more, the document lists state clients and sets up principal duties for military-oriented companies in order to tighten their responsibility for effective placement and implementation of defense contracts. It also provides antimonopoly tools applied to defense order executors with the view to control changes (growth) of prices for complementary parts, raw materials and supplies.

Meanwhile, on May 12 Russian president Vladimir Putin tasked defense ministry to formulate documents on the basis of quotations offered by defense companies in order to speed up contracting of defense order 2012.

On May 5 an official in governmental committee responsible for military shipbuilding said that defense minister Anatoly Serdiukov on Apr 27 was trying to tie a contract for five Project 955A Borei submarines. He brought the price stated by United Shipbuilding Corporation 29% down saying it was groundlessly overrated. Serdiukov invited the corporation's directors to sign the contract on May 2, but shipbuilders did not accept the invitation, obviously, being unsatisfied with the 30-percent price cutting.

Earlier on that day, deputy chairman of government's military industrial committee Yury Borisov said that disagreements on prices for Borei-class subs between defense ministry and United Shipbuilding Corporation would be settled by the end of May 2012. As was reported in Apr 2012, five Project 955A Borei strategic nuclear submarines with reinforced armament would be constructed in accordance with the contract tied between the ministry and the corporation. Each of them will be capable to carry 20 submarine-launched ballistic missiles.

SLBM Bulava will be commissioned into Russian Navy in Oct 2012 along with submarine Yury Dolgoruky, reported Navy Main HQ.

Meanwhile, a high-ranking naval officer said that the first serial Borei-class submarine Alexander Nevsky would perform one test launch of Bulava missile in the current year.

Prior to that, a source in Navy Main HQ said SSBN Alexander Nevsky would launch two Bulava missiles in Oct 2012.