Today, at the Fincantieri plant in Muggiano (La Spezia), the multi-role frigate "Antonio Marceglia", eighth of a series of 10 FREMM units - European Multi Mission Frigates - commissioned to Fincantieri as part of the agreement was delivered to the Italian Navy of Italian-French international cooperation, with the coordination of OCCAR, the joint organization for European cooperation in the field of armaments. The program, of which Orizzonte Sistemi Navali (51% Fincantieri, 49% Leonardo) is prime contractor for Italy, provides for the construction of ten units, all of which have already been ordered to date.
"Antonio Marceglia" is the eighth FREMM unit that Fincantieri completes complete with the combat system, the fourth in multi-role configuration after the "Carlo Bergamini", the "Luigi Rizzo" and the "Federico Martinengo", delivered to the Navy respectively in the 2013 , 2017 and 2018. With 144 meters long and a full load displacement of around 6.700 tons, the FREMM frigates represent a technological excellence: designed to reach a maximum speed of 27 knots and accommodate up to 200 people (crew and personnel), these ships are in able to always guarantee a high degree of flexibility and the ability to operate in a wide spectrum of scenarios and all tactical situations.
The FREMM program, which represents the state of the art of Italian and European defense, stems from the need to renew the line of units of the Lupo Navy class (already radiated) and Mistral (some already in disarmament and the remaining ones nearing achievement of the operating life limit), built by Fincantieri since the 1970s.
These units contribute decisively to the tasks assigned to the Navy, possessing operational capabilities in various sectors, from those more specifically military to those supporting the community, and will constitute the "backbone" of the Naval Squadron in the coming decades.