Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on October 23, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 21, 2026
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Fincantieri launches an underwater drone for protecting submarine infrastructure, aiming to capture a share of the growing sea drone market.
By Giulia Segreti
ROME (Reuters) -Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri on Thursday unveiled its first underwater drone system, as the group changes its product mix to give more space to the increasingly profitable submarine business.
The underwater drone, for both military and civil needs, is designed for the protection and maintenance of critical underwater infrastructure - such as pipelines, electrical cables and telecommunications ones. It can also be used for monitoring and safeguarding the marine environment.
"The threat to underwater infrastructure has historically been underestimated. However, it represents a very real threat of hybrid warfare," Fincantieri Chief Executive Pierroberto Folgiero told reporters.
He added that such threats existed "in the Baltic Sea and increasingly in the Mediterranean, which is the most congested sea in terms of critical infrastructure, but also in the Black Sea".
The company installed the so-called Dynamic Ecosystem for Enhanced Performance, or DEEP, at an Italian Navy experimentation center in the port town of La Spezia.
The platform includes a network of underwater sensors, a control center for real-time management, a group of underwater vehicles and an AI-based system for data analysis and processing.
The global market for sea drone systems is projected to reach 18.9 billion euros ($22.04 billion) by 2030 with an average annual growth rate of 15.7%, preliminary data from a report by PwC's Strategy& showed.
In May, Fincantieri said it expected revenue from its underwater business to double by 2027.
"The launch of DEEP is tangible proof of our commitment to pushing the boundaries of innovation ever deeper," Folgiero said.
In the subsea sector, Fincantieri has been working with several Italian companies, including state-controlled aerospace and defence group Leonardo.
Last year the shipbuilder signed a commercial deal with energy contractor Saipem - which develops specific technologies for subsea drones.
Earlier on Thursday, Saipem's CEO said that the group would continue developing its technology and would continue pursuing commercial opportunities with Fincantieri, dispelling media reports that it was considering selling its underwater drones business to the shipbuilder.
($1 = 0.8575 euro)
(Reporting by Giulia Segreti in Rome, Additional reporting by Francesca Landini in Milan; Editing by Matthew Lewis)
An underwater drone is a remotely operated vehicle designed for various applications, including monitoring and protecting underwater infrastructure like pipelines and cables.
Hybrid warfare refers to a strategy that blends conventional military force with irregular tactics, cyber attacks, and other non-traditional methods to achieve strategic objectives.
DEEP is a platform developed by Fincantieri that integrates underwater sensors, control centers, and AI systems for real-time management and data analysis.
Sea drone systems are autonomous or remotely operated vehicles used for various purposes, including surveillance, maintenance, and protection of marine environments and infrastructure.
The global market for sea drone systems is projected to reach 18.9 billion euros by 2030, with an average annual growth rate of 15.7%.
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