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BERLIN, May 18 (RIA Novosti) - Russian spacecraft manufacturer Energia said Thursday it intends to start extracting lunar reserves of helium-3 to boost terrestrial energy supplies when a re-usable cargo shuttle comes online.
Energia head Nikolai Sevastyanov said helium-3 could eventually supplement natural gas and oil, reserves of which on Earth are rapidly being exhausted.
"The Moon has vast reserves of helium-3, and this is the closest place to Earth where it can be extracted. This fuel is highly effective and has no equivalents on our planet, where natural resources are not boundless," Sevastyanov said.
Sevastyanov earlier said that the Moon's industrial development could solve the problem of the a shortage of energy resources on Earth.
Energia intends to implement the first stage of its lunar program in 2010-2015, using Soyuz piloted spacecraft, Soyuz-FG and Proton carrier rockets.
During the second stage (2015-2020), the space corporation intends to establish a permanent lunar transportation system to include Clipper shuttles.
During the third stage (2020-2025), a permanent base is expected to be created on the Moon.
