Brazil and Italian firm Leonardo join forces to keep the Niterói frigates operational

The Naval Projects Management Company (Emgepron), managed by the Brazilian Navy, and the Italian firm Leonardo signed, within the framework of the Farnborough International Airshow, a memorandum of understanding with the objective of an industrial collaboration for the maintenance of naval weapons systems, naval combat systems, and the systems and sensors of the Niterói Class frigates and the Barroso Class corvette.

In the memorandum signed with Leonardo, Emgepron and the Brazilian Navy are looking for alternatives to maintain the operability of the remaining Niterói Class frigates, as well as the only Barroso Class corvette, a ship that took 14 years between the beginning of its construction and its launching at sea.

The Brazilian Navy’s reduced fleet of surface escorts, already under great pressure due to the age of the material, must remain in service for at least ten more years while the construction of the Tamandaré Frigates gets underway and reaches a satisfactory delivery rate.

The signing ceremony was attended by the Director General of Navy Material (DGMM), Fleet Admiral José Augusto Vieira da Cunha de Menezes, Leonardo’s commercial director, Pasquale Di Bartolomeo, and Emgepron’s CEO, Edesio Teixeira Lima Junior.

STRATEGIC PROGRAMS IN BRAZIL

Currently, Emgepron operates directly in strategic Navy programs such as the Tamandaré Class frigate program (PFCT), the 500-ton patrol vessel project (NaPa 500BR), the Antarctic support ship (NApAnt), and the Rio de Janeiro Naval Technology Cluster Partnership (CTNRJ).

Even with the Modfrag program implemented by Emgepron on the Niterói Class in the early 2000s, which was responsible for the effectiveness of these ships today, it is necessary to foresee important challenges for this final push of this fleet, not only in the question of the use of Brazilian naval power but also in supporting other important Navy programs, such as the Mansup, which uses the Niterói Class frigates as a launching pad.

Emgepron also has a crucial role in constructing the new Antarctic support ship, replacing the old research vessels that have reached the end of their useful life with countless advantages.

The company linked to the Brazilian Navy also produces a series of electronic warfare sensors for naval employment and large-caliber naval ammunition and makes significant investments to expand the capabilities of the Brazilian naval industry.

In 2019, four companies in the Brazilian defense sector – Emgepron, Amazul, Nuclep, and Condor Non-Lethal Technologies – idealized and founded the Rio de Janeiro Naval Technology Cluster (CTN-RJ). CTN-RJ’s priorities are to strengthen the production chains related to naval construction and repair, generate incentives for the Economy of the Sea, and strengthen the export platform of the defense industrial base.

The Naval Technology Cluster seeks to leverage the potential of Rio de Janeiro’s local structure, such as universities and institutes specialized in innovation and technology, to help the growth of the local maritime industry, promote the domestic market, and realize productive chains between companies.

Currently, the Naval Technology Cluster brings together more than 40 associated companies focused on developing the Brazilian economy and naval power.

With information from InfoDefensa