99% of digital telecommunications go through 552 Submarine cables which extend for 1.4 million kilometers. Channels that in 2023 managed beyond a trillion of financial transactions For a value of 10 trillion dollars, with an annual growth of 12%. And, as was not enough, always in the sea winds the 90% of global freight traffic. Hence the projections: by 2030 the global underwater market will almost apply 400 billion euros.
The sea constitutes a strategic resource for the near future, even more so if we consider that space is known much more than the ocean seabed. This is why the strategic agreement on research and technological innovation of the underworked technological innovation signed between ITIR (Interdepartmental Research Center of the University of Pavia) and the Italian Navy.
The agreement provides for the joint development of sensors, new materials, nanotechnologies, photonic and additive manufacturing, a think tank on geopolitics and innovation, but also higher formation and post-graduate courses, projects for the enhancement of submarine archaeological sites, publications and cultural promotion initiatives.
“Italy is a country with a strong maritime vocation that owes to the sea and to the activities connected to it much of its development, well -being and its safety – said theAdmiral of Squadra Antonio Natale of the Italian Navy – For this reason it is necessary to put in place any action aimed at increasing the awareness of the fundamental importance of the sea and to reaffirm the role of Italy as a maritime country. The study and continuous discussion of the issues connected with maritime, declined in the different perspectives through the choral involvement of all the stakeholders of the maritime cluster, is an essential action to process an integrated and shared vision and to process a strategy at a political level. The activities discussed with the University of Pavia are intended to develop research activities, projects and initiatives to create synergies about common interest issues. By strengthening the collaboration with such a high level partner in the university context, such as the University of Pavia, we will be able to help spread maritime culture in northern Italy. ” – He concluded Christmas.
“The ITIR research center of the University of Pavia, excellence in scientific and technological research, has chosen to collaborate with the Italian Navy to develop a platform dedicated to research, technology transfer and training in the underwater sector. It is not only innovation, but of rethinking the way we face a crucial challenge – explained the Professor Stefano Denicolai, president of the Itir Research Center, University of Pavia – Chi wonders why Pavia, so far from the sea, shows that they have not caught a fundamental reality: 70% of our planet is covered with water and its impact, often invisible, is decisive for the economy, geopolitics and our future. Even those who feel distant from the sea suffer the consequences. Ignoring it means not understanding the dynamics that will shape tomorrow’s world “.
The signature of this agreement marks the start of a research and innovation platform on underwater technologies, with the aim of strengthening Italy’s strategic role in a key sector for safety and economic development. In a context of growing geopolitical and economic uncertainties, guaranteeing a solid presence in maritime domination is essential for the country’s stability and competitiveness.
Italy, at the center of one of the busiest seas in the world, has a geographical advantage which, in order to translate into concrete leadership, requires targeted investments in innovation and collaboration between research and industry. The agreement aims precisely to develop new technologies for extreme marine environments and to promote high training initiatives in the underwater sector.