Russia will begin work on building the first nuclear powered combined guided missile destroyer for the Navy in 2020, Navy Deputy Commander-in-Chief for Armament said.
"A preliminary design [of the destroyer] has been made. Following its results, we are now making the necessary decision and work on its technical design will begin shortly and the construction will start after 2020," Viktor Bursuk was quoted as saying by TASS Wednesday.
The warship’s conceptual design has been approved by the Russian Defense Ministry. The future destroyer will have a displacement of about 10000 to 15000 tonnes, according to earlier reports.
The Lider will get a nuclear-powered propulsion plant, Bursuk said.
Twelve ships are planned in total for the Northern Fleet and Pacific Fleet; at the very least, a fleet needs one ship for long-range cruising, one for operating near the home shore, one for training, and one for repair.