Italy's Piloda Shipyard, through its Piloda Defence division, has entered into a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Turkish defence shipbuilder Havelsan and VN Maritime Technologies regarding collaboration on the development, integration and commercialisation of unmanned and hybrid (manned–unmanned) maritime platforms tailored for the Italian market.
Within the scope of the MOU, Piloda Defence and VN Maritime have been authorised as Havelsan's exclusive representatives and industrial partners for all unmanned surface vehicle (USV) projects in Italy.
Accordingly, engagements with Italian defence authorities, coast guard units, public institutions, and private sector stakeholders regarding USV opportunities will be carried out through the VN Maritime–Piloda partnership framework.
Havelsan will contribute advanced defence technologies to the partnership, including autonomous control systems, mission management software, AI-enabled perception capabilities and secure communication architectures.
VN Maritime Technologies will act as the prime contractor for the platform architecture while Piloda Shipyard, through Piloda Defence, will be responsible for local industrial participation in Italy, including shipyard infrastructure, production activities, testing and sea trials, acceptance procedures, and lifecycle support services.
Platform manufacturing and integration, deployment of autonomous systems, sea trials and demonstration activities, as well as maintenance, sustainment and logistics support will be carried out in Italy with strong local industrial involvement.
The cooperation will cover maritime platforms capable of operating in fully autonomous, remotely controlled and manned-unmanned hybrid modes.
These platforms will be designed for a wide range of missions, including maritime surveillance and reconnaissance; counter-smuggling operations; port and critical infrastructure security; coastal security and border protection; and search and rescue support.
The parties are working towards signing the first procurement contract in Italy in the first half of 2026.