MOSCOW, December 16. /TASS/. The Severnaya Shipyard in St. Petersburg is set to deliver the frigate Admiral Kasatonov and the corvette Gremyashchiy to the Russian navy by the New Year, Shipyard CEO Igor Ponomaryov told TASS on Monday.

"If everything suits defense officials and they have no questions about the shipboard systems and armament, we expect to sign delivery certificates somewhere in the period of the New Year holidays… So far, the date of signing delivery-acceptance certificates is unclear and I cannot specify it for the time being," the chief executive said.

Both warships are at the stage of their state trials, he added.

"A ship is a living organism and the timeframe of its delivery to the Defense Ministry depends on how it performs during trials and firings. A considerable part of the trials is over and the last leap remains. But the tests of the military hardware has shown that the Gremyashchiy can perform assignments within its stated characteristics," the chief executive said.

Speaking about the plans for the next year, the chief executive said that the Severnaya Shipyard was due to float out the corvette Retivy, the frigate Admiral Golovko and several shipping vessels.

Also, the logistic support vessel Vsevolod Bobrov is currently undergoing planned trials at the Shipyard. Following the results of the operation of the lead ship Elbrus, including its recent round-the-world voyage, the shipbuilders are making some amendments to improve the ship’s operational characteristics, he said.

The frigate Fleet Admiral Kasatonov is the second (the first serial-produced) Project 22350 warship built at the Severnaya Shipyard (part of Russia’s United Shipbuilding Corporation). The cutting-edge frigate was laid down on November 26, 2009 and floated out on December 12, 2014. The frigate is set to be delivered to the Russian Navy this year.

The lead warship of this series, the Admiral Gorshkov, was delivered to the Navy in the summer of 2018 and the construction of two more frigates (the Admiral Golovko and the Admiral Isakov) continues at the slipways of the Severnaya Shipyard in St. Petersburg.

Project 22350 frigates are expected to become the Russian Navy’s most advanced warships in their class. These frigates displace 4,500 tonnes and can develop a speed of 29 knots. They are armed with Oniks and Kalibr missiles and the Poliment-Redut air defense missile systems.

The Gremyashchiy is the Project 20385 lead corvette laid down at the Severnaya Shipyard on February 1, 2012 and floated out in June 2017. The corvettes of this Project developed by the Almaz Central Marine Design Bureau are designated to detect and destroy enemy submarines and surface ships, provide for troop landing and cope with numerous green-water tasks.

Project 20385 corvettes displace 2,200 tonnes, have an operating range of 3,500 miles and their sea endurance is 15 days. They are armed with Kalibr-NK universal missile systems, Redut anti-aircraft missile complexes and Paket anti-submarine warfare technology.