Spain’s Navantia and Italy’s Fincantieri have announced the strengthening of their industrial cooperation to advance the European Patrol Corvette (EPC) program.
The two companies signed a Memorandum of Understanding to coordinate the management and execution of the project, considered strategic for the continent’s defense.
Part of the Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO) framework and funded by the European Defence Fund (EDF), the EPC aims to develop a new generation of modular, multifunctional, and interoperable corvettes. Led by Italy, Spain, France, and Greece, the program brings together 46 companies from 12 countries, establishing itself as one of the most ambitious initiatives in European defense.
Currently in the Call 1 phase, approved in 2021, the project foresees certification of the design and the construction of two distinct prototypes: a Full Combat Multipurpose version and a Long Range Multipurpose patrol version. For the next stage, the EDF allocated US$181.7 million in 2023 to advance the design and begin prototyping.
The new joint venture between Navantia and Fincantieri will remain open to other partners and will play a central role in developing the combat version, as well as promoting the vessel commercially to other European navies. Executives from both companies emphasized that the agreement not only strengthens industrial cooperation but also lays the groundwork for a new technological and operational standard in Europe’s maritime defense.
Source: Naval News | Photo: X @NavantiaOficial | This content was created with the help of AI and reviewed by the editorial team
We have signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Navantia to jointly coordinate and execute the European Patrol Corvette (EPC) project. The EPC is a project within the PESCO framework, one of the most ambitious European defence initiatives, supported by the European Defence Fund… pic.twitter.com/WSGLyrpNQ4
— Fincantieri (@Fincantieri) February 26, 2026
