Fincantieri is no longer silent on the two Fremm in Egypt
In the 2020 budget, Fincantieri confirms the sale (so far never specified) of the two Fremm (previously intended for the Italian Navy) to Egypt. Here are facts, numbers, rumors and insights
Fincantieri raises the curtain on the sale of the two Fremm frigates to Egypt.
As Radiocor pointed out yesterday , the Trieste shipbuilding group in the draft budget prepared for the shareholders' meeting on 8 April for the first time in months explicitly refers to the sale of two Fremm frigates abroad and , in the explanatory note, mentions the buyer: the Egyptian Navy.
The information is made public more than three months after the delivery of the first ship.
Last December 23 with a "muted and not publicized" ceremony, Fincantieri delivered to the officers of the Egyptian Navy, at the Muggiano shipyards in La Spezia, the multi-role frigate Fremm Spartaco Schergat, now renamed "Al-Galala" . And in mid-February, the second of the two Fremm frigates destined for the Cario began sea trials, as reported by NavalNews .
All the details.
THE FREMM PROGRAM
The Fremm is a class of multipurpose frigates designed by the Italian Fincantieri and the French company Naval Group for their respective navies. The Fremm program consists of the construction of 18 ships: 8 for France, 10 for Italy. The first Fremm was delivered in 2012 and the contractual delivery target is 2022 for all 18 frigates.
THE SALE OF TWO FREMM FRIGATES
In the 2020 accounts note, Fincantieri underlined the consolidation in the military sector at national and international level with the new units destined for the Italian Navy, two new Fremm and two U212 NFS submarines .
"The sale – specified the note – provides for the transfer of two units of the Fremm program that Orizzonti Sistemi Navali SpA (joint venture with Leonardo) acquired as prime contractor for the Italian Navy as part of the agreements with Occar (Joint Organization for arms cooperation).
THE SALES CONTRACT COMPLETED IN THE FOURTH QUARTER 2020
In the 2020 financial statements, available from today on the institutional website of the shipbuilding group controlled by Cdp , we read that "during the fourth quarter of 2020, a contract was finalized, which led to the sale of two Fremm units, of which the first was delivered to December 2020 and the second to be delivered in 2021 ".
And for the first time, the buyer is mentioned, namely the Egyptian Navy.
THE AMOUNT OF THE SALE
The amount of the transaction, carried out under the Conte 2 government, was never disclosed.
According to press sources, the contract is worth 1.2 billion euros.
THE TWO UNITS SENT TO THE EGYPTIAN NAVY
The two ships were already inaugurated and named after two gold medal sailors for military valor, Spartaco Schergat and Emilio Bianchi. They were then refitted to be destined for the Egyptian navy.
As we said, Fincantieri delivered the first – Spartaco Schergat, now renamed “Al-Galala” – to the Egyptian Navy last December 23rd.
In mid-February, sea trials began on the second Fremm frigate, called Bernees (FFG 1003), which will be delivered to Egypt in the coming weeks.
HOW THE FINCANTIERI FREMM PROGRAM CONTINUES
This allowed Fincantieri to continue the Fremm program as the units sold, the ninth and the tenth, previously ordered by the Italian Navy, will have to be replaced with two new constructions in the coming years to be delivered to the Italian Navy.
In fact, last 25 February, at the Riva Trigoso shipyard in Fincantieri, the cutting of the first sheet metal was celebrated for the first of the two new units for the Italian Navy.
THE AGREEMENT WITH EGYPT
Also, as NavalNews recalls, the contract with Egypt is expected to include options for two additional newly built frigates, as the program covered four platforms, according to industry sources.
But the naval package would be part of a larger agreement to be signed with Italian industries and which includes Eurofighter Typhoon and numerous Leonardo M-346 training aircraft, plus an observation satellite, for a total value of 10.7 billion dollars. .
SALE FRIGATE FREMM TO GREECE IN SIGHT?
But the news for the Fremm program of the Trieste shipyard group does not stop there.
In mid-February, Fincantieri saw the opportunity to sell Fremm frigates to the Greek Navy which intends to renew its fleet.
In fact, according to Kathimerini , Athens is evaluating a proposal from Fincantieri and Leonardo for the supply of four Fremm multi-mission frigates. These units constitute "the backbone of the Italian Navy" which has 8 units destined to become 10 once the program is completed, points out the Greek daily.
This is a machine translation from Italian language of a post published on Start Magazine at the URL https://www.startmag.it/smartcity/fincantieri-non-tace-piu-sulle-due-fremm-egitto/ on Wed, 17 Mar 2021 11:24:13 +0000.