According to the Italian economic newspaper “Il Sole 24 ore“, Italy would be ready to formalize the purchase of 4 U-212A NFS (Near Future Submarine) submarines.
The Italian government would have found the resources for the first two boats, but already formulating a financing plan for the remaining two. This would allow the replacement of the 4 “Sauro” class submarines currently in service in the Italian Navy, leaving the number of submarines in service unchanged (8).
The U-212 NFS class is an improvement on the current “Todaro” class: submarines will have superior characteristics from the point of view of navigation and electronic devices. In addition, the possibility will be provided for these units to launch sea-land missiles.
Deliveries of the first tranche of 2 submarines are expected to take place by 2027.