New Delhi: India and Russia are in the last leg of their negotiations on the cost of Admiral Gorshkov aircraft carrier repair and refit and the final price will be
somewhere between USD 2.2 billion and USD 2.9 billion.
"The talks are in their last leg and an agreement on the fresh price of Gorshkov refit will be arrived at in a week," Defence Ministry sources said here today.
While the Russians pegged the cost at USD 2.9 billion this February, India has been showing keenness in finalizing it for about USD 2.2 billion.
"We cannot take a guess on the final price now, as the negotiations are currently on. The agreement will be somewhere between the two amounts that have come up for discussions," sources said.
A Russian delegation which arrived here on July 10 had held discussions with Defence Ministry officials for about a week and have now returned to Moscow, sources said.
India had bought Admiral Gorshkov in 2004 for USD 964 million and sent it for refit to the Sevmash Shipyard in Russia. That apart, India also bought 16 MiG29Ks to operate on
the warship at a cost of USD 650 million.
The Russian shipyard had revised its price three times, first demanding additional USD 1.5 billion in 2007, then revising it to USD 2.2 billion in 2008 and finally asking
for USD 2.9 billion this February.
Three Indian delegations had visited Russia in the last two months, including a visit headed by Defence Secretary Vijay Singh, to arrive at a final figure for the aircraft
carrier, but without much success.
Bureau Report
