KIEV, April 26 – Pivdenne Design Bureau and Pivdenmash production amalgamation (both based in Dnipropetrovsk) and the Italian-based AvioSpA have signed a contract for the supply of rocket engines for the fourth stage of the new European Vega launch vehicle.

The contract is designed for three years, with the right to prolong it, a source familiar with the details of the Ukrainian-European cooperation on the Vega program told Interfax-Ukraine. It envisages the production and supply of five rocket engines to the European partners. The delivery of the first serial engine to the customer is scheduled for 2012.