Overview
- OCCAR signed the contract on 24 September 2026 with Orizzonte Sistemi Navali, a Fincantieri‑Leonardo joint venture, for development, production and initial in‑service support of two DDX destroyers valued at about €3.7 billion with roughly €1.3 billion in options.
- The ships are planned for delivery in 2033 and 2035 and will replace older Italian destroyers, though reports differ on whether the successor is the Horizon class or the Durand de la Penne class.
- Leonardo will provide the combat system centred on SADOC 5, a digital S‑band AESA radar, and MBDA weapons while ELT Group will supply a next‑generation electronic warfare suite to give the ships integrated air and missile defence against missile, ballistic and hypersonic threats.
- OSN will place major sub‑supply packages in the coming weeks with about €1.8 billion allocated to Fincantieri and about €1.7 billion to Leonardo, with Fincantieri acting as platform integrator and Leonardo leading the C5I work.
- The DDX design emphasises deep digitalisation and growth margins, including Fincantieri’s Navis Sapiens data‑centric architecture, a DC power network with energy storage, and systems to manage unmanned surface and underwater assets, which together aim to strengthen Italy’s supply chain, skilled jobs and NATO interoperability.