Orizzonte Sistemi Navali delivers tenth FREMM frigate to Italian Navy

Emilio Bianchi (F 589), the Italian Navy's tenth Bergamini-class FREMM multimission frigate. (Fincantieri)

The Italian Navy has received its tenth Bergamini-class FREMM multimission frigate, Emilio Bianchi (F 589), from Orizzonte Sistemi Navali (OSN), the joint venture between Fincantieri and Leonardo.

Emilio Bianchi was formally handed over during a ceremony held at Fincantieri's shipyard in La Spezia on 31 July.

It is the second of two frigates in the series to be delivered to the Italian Navy in a new hybrid general-purpose (GP)/anti-submarine warfare (ASW) configuration, otherwise known as the ‘ASW Enhanced' variant.

Its delivery follows that of ninth ship Spartaco Schergat (F 598) – the first ‘ASW Enhanced' unit – on 15 April.

The two ships were procured as replacements for the two FREMM GP-configured frigates that were sold to Egypt.

Launched in 2005, the Italian Navy's multi-year FREMM programme now has 12 vessels on order. The first 10 ships in the series, which were delivered from 2013, included four in the GP/anti-surface warfare configuration, four configured for ASW, and the two ‘ASW Enhanced' variants.

The final ships on order are two follow-on next-generation FREMM Evo (Evolution)-class frigates – the first of which started construction at Fincantieri's shipyard in Riva Trigoso, Genoa, on 3 April.

OSN was awarded a contract for the FREMM Evo frigates in July 2024, with the first ship expected to be delivered in 2029, followed by the second in 2030.

For more information, please seeOrizzonte Sistemi Navali delivers first ‘ASW Enhanced' FREMM frigate to Italian Navy .