On 24 October 2023, with a ceremony held at the headquarters of the Organization for Armaments Cooperation (OCCAR) in Rome, OCCAR signed with the Consortium coordinated by Naviris and which brings together Fincantieri (IT), Naval Group ( FR), Navantia (ES) and other components from Greece, Denmark and Norway, all contractual documents related to the Modular and Multirole Patrol Corvette (MMPC) for the implementation of the first phase of the European Patrol Corvette (EPC) project.
The overall value of this first phase is 87 million euros and is strongly supported by the European Commission (EC) through the European Defense Fund (FED). In fact, 60 million will be financed by the Commission in the form of “contributions” while the remaining 27 million will be financed by the Member States (Italy, France, Spain, Greece, Denmark and Norway) who have decided to support the project. OCCAR will manage the entire scope of the project, acting as a granting authority, mandated by the European Commission, and as a contracting authority, mandated by the Member States mentioned above.
On the same day, company delegates signed a consortium agreement which aims to regulate the execution of the tender, maximizing synergies and collaboration between European shipbuilding industries.
With a duration of 24 months, this first MMPC contract aims to provide the initial design of a new class of Defense ships, the European Patrol Corvette (EPC), launched in the context of a PESCO project. The EPC will initially include two main variants: Long Range Multipurpose and Full Combat Multipurpose, maximizing in both innovations, synergies and contamination between the three main European shipyards Naval Group, Fincantieri, Navantia.
The EPC program represents a step forward in European defense cooperation. It will strongly contribute to European sovereignty in the second-line shipping sector, strengthening the continental industry, increasing its efficiency and reducing delays in moving from military needs to delivery to the Navies. By jointly developing a new and “disruptive” class of ships, the four companies aim to guarantee and promote European sovereignty based on in-house continental skills and know-how. This signature highlights the capabilities of nations, through the management of OCCAR, to work effectively together and pool the know-how of their naval industries, to support European Navies. It also shows how important and effective the FED can be to support European Member States in developing capabilities in the field of Defense made-in Europe.
Based on innovative and “disruptive” technologies, the new class will showcase smart, innovative, affordable, sustainable, interoperable and flexible ships designed to fulfill a wide range of missions in an ever-evolving environment. Depending on the requirements specified by each Navy, the units will be able to carry out a wide range of missions in different operational contexts, such as surveillance on the high seas with a high degree of autonomy or law enforcement and sovereignty affirmation missions closer to coast, suited to the needs of the various navies .
