 Project 955A was designed by Sergei Kovalev of the Rubin Design Bureau as an improved variant of the original Project 955.Construction of the "Knyaz Pozharsky" began with the keel laying on 23 December 2016 at the Sevmash shipyard in Severodvinsk, part of the United Shipbuilding Corporation.At the time the keel was laid, Russian Navy's Deputy Commander-in-Chief Vice Admiral Viktor Bursuk declared "The 955A series is coming to an end with this submarine.