Fincantieri, Naval Group, Navantia Submit European Multirole Patrol Corvette Proposal

A consortium led by Eurpean naval shipbuilding firms - Fincantieri, Naval Group and Navantia and coordinated by Naviris submitted on December 9th an industrial proposal related to the Modular Multirole Patrol Corvette (MMPC) call of the European Defence Fund (EDF).

The European patrol Corvette (EPC) will be the first common naval capability in Europe and the most important naval initiative within the Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO). The clear objective of the proposal is to ensure a European sovereignty in the second rank warship production.

“Over the last years, and more specifically during 2021, there have been growing calls for Europeans to take responsibility for their own security both within NATO and as part of the European common security and defence policy. Several European Union member states have repeatedly underlined the need to develop common military capabilities to face common challenges,” a joint statement from the companies said.

This has been made possible thanks to the participation of:

4 countries in EPC PESCO project (Italy, France, Spain and Greece) ;

6 countries involved in the co-founding (Italy, France, Spain, Greece, Denmark and Norway) ;

3 European Shipbuilding Industrials (Fincantieri, Naval Group and Navantia) with Naviris in charge of the coordination;

40 companies for maritime systems and equipment.

Based on a unified frame of standards and using collaborative advanced engineering methodologies, EPC will be developed in the best cooperative way from conceptual studies up to the initial design.

The produced design will constitute a break-through from current warships, as it will be modular, flexible, as well as more energy-efficient, greener, safer, more interoperable, and cyber-secure. MMPC will finally be characterized to address specific national requirements, keeping the defined design as the common reference.

This proposal constitutes the first essential step towards preparing the future production of the vessel in the scope of a second call under EDF in the multi-annual perspective. In this context, the promotion of the program to other European Navies, with a joint action of Nations already part of PESCO program, will strengthen the European industry, increasing cooperation, efficiency and lowering duplication in defense spending.