An artist impression of the Italian Type 212 NFS submarine. (OCCAR)
The Italian Navy's Type 212 Near Future Submarine (NFS) programme has achieved another milestone with the successful delivery of the system design review (SDR), the European defence procurement agency OCCAR has announced.
Under the Type 212 NFS programme, the Italian Navy is planning to procure four new boats that are evolved from the service's existing Todaro (Type 212A)-class air-independent propulsion diesel-electric submarines (SSKs).
In a statement, OCCAR said the SDR had been delivered “in accordance to the strict criteria of the system engineering adopted for this design” and its success paved the way to start the critical design review process.
The latest milestone follows the start of construction on the first Type 212 NFS at Fincantieri's Muggiano shipyard in La Spezia on 11 January. The Italian shipbuilder is building the first pair under a contract worth EUR1.35 billion (USD1.63 billion) awarded via OCCAR on behalf of the Italian Ministry of Defence in February 2021. The contract includes an option for the two follow-on submarines, in addition to new training devices and 10 years of in-service support.
Under current planning, the first two submarines are expected to be delivered in 2027 and 2029. If the options are exercised, delivery of the third and fourth submarines is anticipated in 2030 and 2031, respectively.
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