Fincantieri, the exclusive supplier of the Italian Navy and a US Navy partner, will extend its expertise by providing on-demand service to German Navy submarines.

The company’s services come as part of an enduring industrial co-operation agreement since 1996 between Italy and Germany on the U-212A class of submarines.

The Italian Navy’s U-212A fleet comprises four units; the German fleet has six.

This contract will last for five years and it will replicate the on-demand service model Fincantieri applies to Italian Navy vessels, where the company intervenes on call to ensure the highest performance of the units.

Fincantieri taps into a larger industrial base

According to Fincantieri, the German Navy has “the largest shipbuilding capacity in the world” for conventional submarines.

Tapping into Germany’s naval industrial base will give the Italian shipbuilding company the means to produce leading underwater capabilities.

This is a nascent sector that will grow enormously over the next decade. In fact, GlobalData valued the global underwater systems market at $4.9bn in 2022 and expect it to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 3.41% between 2022-2032.

Fincantieri’s move to support German submarines goes beyond consolidating its European presence; the contract suggests the company plans to become a leader in this growing area.

A week before the announcement, on 6 June, Fincantieri announced the beginning of production activities on its second Near Future Submarine (U-212NFS) for the Italian Navy.

Access to Germany’s naval industrial base will provide an edge in an industry that will see greater competition. Already, the Italian Navy agreed to provide Thales an in-house “Integration Service Centre” within the navy’s La Speiza naval base complex on the Ligurian Sea.