§ Mr. Warrenasked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what will be the cost of each round of the proposed European rocket vehicle, compared with the cost of the equivalent vehicle already available from the United States.
§ Mr. Michael HeseltineIt is difficult to make a simple comparison. The French have indicated that they would expect the unit cost of the European vehicle to be about £6.3 million, but it is at an early stage of development and this estimate may be subject to revision later on. The vehicle will be able to launch satellites of up to 750 kg into geostationary orbit. The American launchers currently available are the Thor Delta 2914 (350 kg) costing about £4 million and the Atlas Centaur (850 kg) costing some £10 million. A Thor Delta 3914 (450 kg) may soon be available but no costs have been announced for this. The European vehicle will not be available till about 1980 and ail cost figures may have altered greatly by then.