Institutional Relations

Our international structure and presence brings us into contact with a wide range of different realities. This requires a thorough understanding of the territory and of the needs of our stakeholders in order to effectively respond to requests and define priorities.

The relationship and dialogue with communities and institutions is managed at Parent Company level through the Public Affairs Department – Central and Local Government Relations and the Brussels Representative Office, which oversees European institutional affairs.

They represent:

• our direct link to national and European Institutions as well as Public Administrations, through which we attempt to channel all the requests from and to the territories;
• the Fincantieri Group and all our affiliated companies before the Parliament, the Government, and the national and European Institutions, the actions of which may have direct or indirect impact on the Company, through symmetrical relationships with their counterparts.

We have structured a process based on mutual trust, presenting the Group's point of view on the positions of public decision-makers, supporting corporate motions in full transparency, also by developing position papers supported by legal-normative, scientific, and economic foundations.

The Public Affairs Department regards sustainability as an essential component in its institutional activities, capable of providing added value to both corporate strategies and the national sustainable development agenda. In particular, in the environmental field, the Department actively promoted to the relevant political and administrative authorities regulations and measures to support the circular economy and ecological transition. This resulted in the establishment of the New Sustainable Dredging Plan and the provision of the option of full re-use - via ecocompatible procedures - of sediments recovered from dredging. Furthermore, the Department supported the Company in the institutional interlocutions for the hydrogen IPCEI (Important Project of Common European Interest) project with the aim of promoting the decarbonisation of marine transport, including the cruise industry that offers multiple opportunities for development.

The administrative and strategic support actions carried out by the Department have resulted in: the promotion of incentive measures for the ecological reconversion of private national vessels for a new Italian green fleet, the national plan of "cold ironing" for the abatement of CO₂ emissions in the national ports and the relative normative modifications to the electric tariff necessary to stimulate the use of the electric energy from earth for the shipowners, the "floating offshore wind" plan necessary for the introduction of this type of electricity production from renewable sources within the national supply funds.

Group relations at the European level are ensured by the European Union Office through the Brussels Representative Office. Our activities involve strengthening the structured dialogue with the relevant institutional stakeholders and the representation of the company's interests both within associations and at European bodies (in particular the European Commission, the Council, the European Parliament and the European Defence Agency) with the aim of creating value for the Company.
Thanks to our constant dialogue with institutional partners, we are a well-established stakeholder at the European institutions and participate in the definition of European policies of interest to the Company through specific contributions at the various stages of regulatory drafting.

There are, in fact, numerous topics on the European political agenda that impact on the Company’s directions for development. These include the decarbonization and sustainability strategies of the European Green Deal and digitalization, initiatives relating to international trade and the competitiveness of European industry, the challenges of energy transition, green finance, sustainable corporate governance and due diligence, research and innovation programs, and European security and defence issues. Also relevant is the Union’s response to the new challenges in the geopolitical and international spheres with reference to the regulatory framework to strengthen the competitiveness of European net-zero emission industry.

In line with the company's commitment and ambition in these areas, particularly with respect to the green and digital transition, in April 2022 Fincantieri was appointed Chairman of the maritime segment of the new Industrial Alliance launched by the European Commission dedicated to renewable and low-emission fuel value chains. The Industrial Alliance aims to promote the availability and use of this type of fuel for the entire maritime sector, contributing actively to the decarbonization of this important ecosystem and to the 2030 and 2050 emissions reduction targets.
Participation in various institutional round tables and expert groups dedicated, among others, to the extension of circular economy policies to the military through our contribution to the activities of the expert group (Project Circle) 'Sustainable Ecodesign' within the Incubation Forum for Circular Economy in European Defence promoted by the European Defence Agency.
All activities at EU level are carried out in accordance with the requirements of the European Transparency Register which includes Fincantieri.