MOSCOW, February 17. /TASS/. The Project 11442M heavy nuclear-powered missile cruiser Admiral Nakhimov set to become the Russian Navy’s most powerful surface ship after its repairs and upgrade at the Sevmash Shipyard is being prepared for its handover," the Shipyard’s press office reported on Thursday.

"The Sevmash Shipyard has begun setting up and training the delivery team for the Project 11442M ship. The crew will comprise workers, builders, adjustment and test engineers, designers, technologists and specialists of other professions. Overall, the delivery team will comprise over 1,000 people," the press office said.

After all the works are concluded, the warship will deploy to the sea where the delivery team and the crew will check the vessel in all the modes of its operation, it added.

The Sevmash Shipyard is carrying out the repairs and upgrade of the Project 11442M cruiser on its embankment. Large-scale internal works have been launched aboard the warship: specialists are mounting equipment, systems and assemblies, painting and insulating premises, the press office specified.

The Shipyard’s specialists will load onto the cruiser and install over 5,000 items of equipment and more than a million of various items. About 200 km of pipelines and 1,800 km of cables will be laid on the Fleet’s future flagship. All electric installation works are being carried out by specialists of the Arktika enterprise. The project designer, the Severnoye Design Bureau, has created the warship’s 3D model for working out documentation, it said.

Sevmash CEO Mikhail Budnichenko said that the work on upgrading the Project 11442M (codename: Orlan) heavy nuclear-powered missile cruiser Admiral Nakhimov was proceeding as scheduled. The Shipyard’s chief executive said that the warship was due to be delivered to the Russian Navy in 2022.

The heavy nuclear-powered missile cruiser Admiral Nakhimov has been under repairs at the Sevmash Shipyard since 1999. Real work on the warship has been carried out since 2013.

The upgrade has substantially boosted the cruiser’s strike capabilities. In particular, the warship will carry 10 versatile shipborne launchers for eight Kalibr-NK or Oniks cruise missiles. Eventually, the Admiral Nakhimov will carry Tsirkon hypersonic missiles.