OSN and OCCAR ink In-Service Support contract for Italian Navy FREMM frigates programme

On June 24, Orizzonte Sistemi Navali and OCCAR signed the In-Service Support (TLSM 2) contract for Italian Navy FREMM frigates programme. An amendment which includes the activation of significant and crucial innovations for the class was also signed and a Thales towed body sonar workshop was inaugurated.

The CEO of Orizzonte Sistemi Navali (OSN) – the joint-venture between Fincantieri (51%) and Leonardo (49%) – Giovanni Sorrentino, and OCCAR (Organisation for Joint Armament Cooperation)-EA Director Joachim Sucker, the later on behalf of Italian MoD, have signed the Through Life Sustainment Management (TLSM 2) in-service support (ISS) contract for Italian Navy FREMM frigates on June 24, at the Aragonese Castle, HQ of the Italian Navy Southern Maritime Interregional Command, in Taranto.

The ceremony was attended by Vice Admiral Giuseppe Abbamonte, the Italian Programme Committee Representative and Director of the Italian Naval Armaments Directorate, and Vice Admiral Vincenzo Montanaro, the Commander of the IT Navy Southern Maritime Interregional Command, and Mr. Luigi Durante, the OCCAR Horizon Programme Division Manager,  alongside  Fincantieri, Leonardo, MBDA, ELT Group, Thales and other industrial representatives.

Managed by the OCCAR Horizon Programme Division and destined to ensure the continuation of Italian Navy FREMM frigates ISS for the next five years, the TLSM 2 contract assigned to OSN as prime contractor, is valued at approximately €764 million (of which around €335 million is optional), according to the industrial press statement. Concurrently, sub-contracts are being finalized with Fincantieri and Leonardo, worth approximately 265 million euros (with about 130 million euros in options) and 190 million euros (about 78 million euros in options) respectively, alongside other players including MBDA, ELT Group, and Thales Defense and Mission Systems (TDMS).

Benefitting from the experiences achieved throughout the initial In-Service Support (ISS) contract also known as Temporary Global Support (TGS) starting from the delivery of Bergamini first-of-class frigate, OSN, OCCAR as managing agency and the Marina Militare, have conceived, developed and signed in July 2019 the FREMM IT TLSM contract. Thanks to the latter, the industrial team including personnel of Fincantieri, Leonardo and other main defence industry players led by OSN, have provided the ISS for the Italian FREMM frigates though a unique entry point, granting preventive maintenance including Just in Time (JIT) materiel and corrective maintenance for platform and combat system sub-systems, spare parts supply and repairs as well as in service support engineering and ground services using a Through Life Management approach.

The TLSM ensures long-term operational availability and supportability through integrated processes to reduce the risk of obsolescence (Diminishing Manufacturing Sources and Material Shortages (DMSMS) with LBO (Last Buy Order) and technical upgrades) and optimizes life cycle costs while maintaining system performance.

Compared to the TGS, with the entry into service of new FREMM platforms, the TLSM 1 framework contract saw a significant increase of the so-called “Ship Years”, representing a year of operational activity for a single frigate to be maintained. The latter figure passed from 18 to 48 “Ship Years”, a concrete indicator of the efforts requested to the industrial team led by OSN and the required maintenance and repair developments to keep up ships fully operative during their life.

Thanks to the TLSM 1 contract, the Italian Navy has recorded a 186% increase in days at sea (or PAS – Period at Sea), with a significant increase of the technical availability of the FREMMs component. “All this while maintaining stable operational availability at sea, confirming the solidity of the support system,” highlighted OSN CEO.

Fincantieri, Leonardo and the main defence industrial players led by OSN have managed over 6,800 corrective maintenance operations, moved more than 60,000 preventive maintenance items with a JIT approach and corrective spares, carried out almost 4,000 repairs, “registering a substantial respect of Unavailability Maintenance Periods (UMP) duration (the planned dock and repair periods, driver of technical availability), which testifies to the reliability of the industrial logistics chain,” according to data and statement provided by OSN.

“All this was possible thanks to an extraordinary synergy between the Navy and the industry, who worked side by side with team spirit, shared vision and great ability to adapt,” remarked OSN CEO.

The TLSM 2.0 contract, which will cover a period of five and a half years (for a total of 66 “Ship Years”) from July 2025, represents the natural evolution of the TLSM 1.0. “It is not just a temporal continuation, but a real quantum leap, the result of the experience gained, its achievements and the shared desire to do even better. The virtuous and innovative path of increasing this synergies continues, bringing clear benefits,” said Sorrentino.

Based on the lessons learned with the TLSM 1.0 contract, the new integrated support package provides a further evolved front office management, an increase from 3,000 to 3,500 AOR (Annual Operating Requirements) or hours at sea per year for each ship (equal to circa 150 days of operational use), alongside an increased number of overhauls as well as of UMP stops for repairs because the ships are aging and the increased number of platforms to be maintained. A challenge for industry, OCCAR and Italian MoD (NAVARM) and Navy, to which they have carefully prepared together, looking to innovation and artificial intelligence-based tools.

Starting with the turnkey TGS package provided uniquely by the industry, the integrated support package offered by the TLSM 1.0 saw a significant involvement of the Italian Navy, which has further evolved through a closer activity with the industry. Thanks to the new support package arrangement, the military and civilian personnel working in the Italian Navy maintenance facilities will be further involved and the industry will be more near to the customer to reduce the equipment unavailability for maintenance and repair activities.

On the same day of the TLSM 2.0 contract signature, the same military and industrial authorities welcomed by the Taranto Arsenal director, Admiral Pasquale De Candia and Eng Massimo Marinzi, Defence Business Director Thales Italia, alongside arsenal workers’ trade unions participated to the inauguration of the FREMM frigate’s Thales towed body sonar workshop at the same arsenal, which outfitting was completed under the TLSM 1.0 contract. Scheduled to begin maintenance activities by October 2025, the new facility will reduce overhaul duration by more than 50 per cent, enhancing the skills of Navy personnel through on-the-job training with industry. The workshop is equipped to carry out interventions for all FREMM frigates, with the possibility, in the future, to took place maintenance activities also for foreign navies, including those currently in service with the French Navy. According to OCCAR statement, the development of the workshop within the Taranto arsenal will further strength the on-going synergy between industry, naval operators and arsenal personnel, as well as continuing the enhancement of a fundamental capacity for the Italian Navy fleet.

The new support package will provide, according to OSN CEO, significant benefits including greater operational efficiency, thanks to unified and coordinated management; faster response times, eliminating fragmentation between contracts and interlocutors; cost optimization, thanks to economies of scale and an overall vision of the life cycle; and management flexibility that allows for a prompt response to the operational needs of the Navy.

“An important contribution also came from the flexibility of the OCCAR framework, which allowed – through a streamlined contract – to rapidly activate targeted interventions, technical updates, engineering support and experiments. An agile and effective tool, which demonstrated how contractual rigor and operational readiness can be combined,” said Sorrentino.

This new contract is a scalable platform, extendable to all Italian Navy ships, replicable in other contexts and capable of adapting to the future needs of the Armed Forces, according to the industrial team representatives.

“After-sales support has become as strategically important as shipbuilding itself. It is a key factor in ensuring the long-term operational continuity and effectiveness of naval assets. In this area, a strong synergy has developed between the Italian Navy and Fincantieri—a relationship built on structured, ongoing collaboration and mutual trust, which now stands out as a hallmark of Italy’s industrial system. For this reason, Fincantieri is decisively investing in strengthening its after-sales service offering, creating a dedicated business line that the company is increasingly promoting at the international level,” commented Pierroberto Folgiero, CEO and Managing Director of Fincantieri.

 “This programme illustrates our commitment to designing and supplying high-tech integrated solutions and capabilities for naval applications as well as – together with our partners – ensuring a constant presence in support of the Italian Navy’s operations, leveraging innovative and modern services. Delivering these services guarantees the operator can make the most of the advanced technologies on the field. We will continue to work in synergy with the Italian Navy, according to the principles of efficiency and effectiveness,” stated Carlo Gualdaroni, Co-General Manager Business of Leonardo and Chairman of Orizzonte Sistemi Navali.

FREMM class innovations

Concurrently to the TLSM 2, OCCAR and OSN representatives also signed Amendment 27 to the FREMM contract, which includes the activation of significant and crucial innovations for the class of ships that the industry continues to produce. To date, 17 FREMM Frigates have been delivered, nine to Italy (out of twelve) and eight to France (out of eight). The final production phase of the tenth FREMM ship, Emilio Bianchi (F 589), is currently underway and is scheduled for delivery to the Italian Navy by the end of July 2025. In parallel, the design, development and production phase of the two additional FREMM ships in the EVO version is underway. These two ships will be delivered in mid-2029 and mid-2030, respectively.