Italian shipbuilding group Fincantieri announced its U.S. arm Fincantieri Marine Group, Washington, D.C., has been awarded a $30 million U.S. Navy contract for materials procurement and engineering work on the first four Landing Ship Medium (LSM) vessels, formally launching the initial phase of a program that could ultimately cover 35 vessels built at shipyards in Wisconsin and Mississippi.
The contract funds the procurement of long-lead-time materials and engineering and production readiness activities needed to support a construction start at Fincantieri Marinette Marine, Marinette, Wis., as early as the fourth quarter of 2026. It follows a Feb. 18 Navy announcement that Fincantieri Marine Group would build four units under the LSM program.
Another shipbuilder, Bollinger Shipyards, Lockport, La., is also supporting the program. In September 2025, it was awarded a contract for long-lead-time material procurement and lead-ship design engineering. The program's lead vessel, USS McClung (LSM-1,) will be constructed at Bollinger's Pascagoula, Miss., shipyard.
The awards are structured as precursors to future construction contracts, which the Navy plans to issue through a vessel construction manager model, an approach that applies commercial production practices, including parallel construction, to naval shipbuilding.
“Enhancing our maritime dominance depends on a modernized fleet and a strong industrial base, and today’s contract helps accomplish both,” Secretary of the Navy John C. Phelan wrote on social media platform X. “It reduces schedule risk and enables our shipbuilders to rapidly transition to ship construction.”
The 328'1"x52'6" McClung-class LSM is designed to support U.S. Marine Corps distributed operations and littoral maneuver, providing the ability to rapidly move and sustain forces in contested coastal environments. Each ship will have capacity for 500 metric tons of cargo and up to 282 troops.
The program began as the Light Amphibious Warship in 2020, but early industry bids for a custom design exceeded $350 million per hull. In 2024, the Navy pivoted to a commercial off-the-shelf design to cut costs and accelerate production. In December 2025, the LST 100 design from Damen was selected as the technical basis for the class.
Fincantieri CEO Pierroberto Folgiero called the award a milestone in the company's relationship with the Navy. "It reflects the confidence placed in the industrial capabilities built in the United States and in our ability to support complex naval programs with discipline, speed, and technical excellence," he said.
Fincantieri, which was building the cancelled Constellation-class frigates and is now also aiming to build Coast Guard icebreakers, said it has invested more than $800 million in its U.S. shipyards over the past decade.
