The United States Government has decided to award the consortium led by Lockheed Martin and of which Fincantieri Marinette Marine (FMM) is a part an order with the instrument of the Undefinitized Contract Action, as an advance on the Foreign Military Sales contract for the construction of four units Multi-Mission Surface Combatants (MMSC) destined for Saudi Arabia. The ships will be built at the Fincantieri shipyard in Marinette in the state of Wisconsin.
The advance will finance the start of the planning for an amount up to 450 million dollars
and the planning for the construction of the four units and will be mainly divided between
Lockheed Martin and Fincantieri Marinette Marine. The ships will be highly manoeuvrable, flexible and
built by the same consortium for the US Navy, with a range increased to 5.000 nautical miles and a speed exceeding 30 knots, making them capable of both coastal and offshore patrol operations and to address threats to maritime and economic security.
Giuseppe Bono, Chief Executive Officer of Fincantieri, commented: “This contract represents a very prestigious recognition of the foresight of our choice to enter the US market. Since then, in ten years we have consolidated our presence as a reference builder not only for the US Navy, but also for numerous foreign Navies, while contributing to the development of industry and the economic fabric of the Midwest”.
Lockheed Martin and FMM, along with the naval architecture firm Gibbs & Cox and more than 800 suppliers in 42 states, are already collaborating on the US Navy's LCS program, one of the most ambitious in the world in the field of surface ships.
Fincantieri Marine Group (FMG), which controls Fincantieri Marinette Marine and two other sites in the Great Lakes region, Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding and Fincantieri Ace Marine, from 2008 has invested more than 130 million dollars to modernize shipyards in Wisconsin, assuming and forming more than 1.000 people.
