The Ukrainian space industry has increased output by 21.5 percent in the first quarter of 2014 compared with the same period last year, producing $67 million worth of equipment, the country's space agency told Interfax-Ukraine on Friday.
The increase in production output comes at a time when many in the space industry have been forced to come to terms with the possibility of supply disruptions amid the ongoing political crisis in Ukraine following former President Viktor Yanukovych's removal in February.
The Ukrainian space industry exports components and services to the United States, Russia, the EU, Brazil and Saudi Arabia, Interfax Ukraine reported. Russia is particularly dependent on Ukrainian components, as some of the components used in the Proton rocket — Russia's workhorse launch vehicle — are made in eastern Ukraine.