China Denies Russian Blame for Damaged Ship Boiler

China refutes Russia’s allegations that defective Chinese firebricks caused failure of boilers that power a retrofitted Indian aircraft carrier, officials say.

During trials in the Barents Sea last month, the carrier Vikramaditya had propulsion problems, according to RIA Novosti.

Andrei Dyachkov, president of United Russian Shipbuilding stated earlier this month “substandard Chinese firebricks” had damaged the boilers the company was supposed to insulate. In defense, Chinese Defense Minister, Yan Yujun, claimed that “Chinese enterprises” have never exported such products to Russia.

Another spokesperson in retrofitting the ship blamed India.

He said the boilers failed because India refused to use asbestos to guard the structure around the boilers from heat. Designers were then forced to use the firebricks.

The boiler situation adds to a list of postponements and cost overruns the ship has experienced. India agreed to buy the carrier from Russia in 2005 for $947 million. Delivery has been postponed twice, which pushed the cost of renovating the ship to $2.3 billion. The new deadline is October 2013.