KOMSOMOLSK-ON-AMUR. Feb 12 (Interfax-AVN) - Amur Shipyard General Director Andrei Basargin has suggested that Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu set up one of the two national military shipping centers on the Amur Shipyard premises.
"Being aware of the importance of providing the Navy with modern armaments, we consider it necessary to set up at least two shipbuilding centers in Russia. One of them may be deployed in the Far East, on the premises of the Amur Shipyard," Basargin told the minister who was visiting the shipyard to inspect repairs of the Varshavyanka-class diesel-electric submarine and construction of two corvettes.
"If you recognize the Amur Shipyards as the main long-term supplier of warships and submarines to the Pacific Fleet for the sake of the country's defensive capacity, the shipyard will be prepared to build corvettes, frigates, mine sweepers and submarines," the general director said.
The production program for the period until 2024 has won preliminary consent of the Navy command, he continued. The program includes the construction of four corvettes of Project 20380 (mass production will reduce the corvette cost), three frigates of Project 22350, seven mine sweepers of Project 12700 and six diesel-electric submarines of Project 677, as well as repairs and modernization of the Bars-class submarine of Project 971.
Speaking of the proposition of the Amur Shipyard general director, a representative of the Russian Navy told reporters, "The Defense Ministry is interested in cooperation with the Amur Shipyard as the only plant in the Far East repairing and building ships for the Pacific Fleet."
In more than 78 years of its history, the Amur Shipyard has built over 300 ships of various purposes, including 57 nuclear submarines, 41 diesel-electric submarines, 56 warships, 13 transport docks and four floating bases charging nuclear reactors. The shipyard has done a medium overhaul of eight nuclear submarines.