A partnership formed by Italian shipbuilding and design firm Intermarine and defence technology company Leonardo has entered into an agreement with the Directorate of Naval Armaments of Italy's General Secretariat of Defence and National Armaments Directorate for the construction of new mine countermeasures (MCM) vessels for the Italian Navy.
The contract has an estimated value of €1.6 billion (US$1.74 billion) and covers the delivery of five vessels as well as related integrated logistical support. To fulfil the contract, the partnership has formed a temporary grouping of companies with Intermarine as the project lead responsible for vessel construction and Leonardo as supplier of the combat system.
Each new MCM vessel will have a length of 63 metres and a displacement of 1,300 tonnes. The vessels will be capable of conducting MCM inside minefields and using different types of autonomous vehicles.
Construction will take place at Intermarine's La Spezia facilities. The systems Leonardo will provide will include a command and control system, advanced radar and electro-optical sensors, a new broadband sonar with mine detection and classification capabilities, and an integrated multi - communications bandwidth and data link.