Russia is due to deliver two RD-180 rocket engines to the U.S. They were designed specially for American Atlas carrier rockets.
The engine, created by the Russian scientific production company Energomash, is unique. It's an environmentally friendly design and makes for easier control over a carrier rocket's trajectory. In 1997, the U.S. Lockheed Martin company signed a ten-year contract with Energomash worth more than $US 1 BLN. Anatoly Frolov from the Foreign Economic Activity Department says the buyers are satisfied with the quality of the product. “It is made for medium and heavy-weight rockets like Atlas V. It meets all the requirements of the American side. What is crucial is that Americans still buy it. We have a contract for 101 such engines,” he informed.