Italy requests €8 billion from EU SAFE defence loan programme after earlier hesitation
Italy has formally requested €8 billion in concessional loans under the European Union's SAFE defence financing mechanism, reversing earlier public doubts about the programme. The loan will fund procurement and industrial investment; terms are still under negotiation with the European Commission.
Why it matters: Rome took the money after all—watch for German and French requests to follow, turning SAFE from a boutique facility into the EU's de facto defence credit line.
Italy's €3.7 billion DDX destroyer contract opens decade of naval spending with submarines and corvettes on horizon
Italy's €3.7 billion DDX destroyer contract awarded to Fincantieri and Leonardo marks the start of a sustained naval spending programme. Planned follow-on procurements include new submarines, corvettes, and a replacement aircraft carrier, pointing to significant industrial opportunities over the next decade.
Lockheed Martin wins $9.4 million contract to upgrade F-35 assembly stations at Italy's Cameri facility
Lockheed Martin will upgrade assembly stations at the F-35 final assembly facility in Cameri, Italy, under a $9.4 million contract modification. The Cameri plant is Europe's only F-35 production site and builds jets for Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, and Switzerland.
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Fincantieri cuts steel for ninth and final Italian Navy PPA patrol vessel
Fincantieri cut steel for the ninth Multipurpose Patrol Ship (PPA 9) at its Riva Trigoso shipyard, marking the start of construction on the Italian Navy's final PPA vessel.
Former Italian Navy officer launches Sentiq Defence maritime drone integrator in Liguria
A former Italian Navy mine warfare officer has launched Sentiq Defence, a company based in Bordighera on Italy's Ligurian coast that will supply navies, coast guards, and port and energy operators with uncrewed surface boats, underwater surveillance sonars, remotely operated submersibles, and aerial drones. Sentiq will begin as an integrator of existing systems.