Fincantieri’s shipyard in Muggiano (La Spezia) hosted the launching ceremony for the “Romeo Romei” submarine on July 4, the last of the four U212A “Todaro” class twin units ordered by the Central Unit for Naval Armament – NAVARM for the Italian Navy.

The U212A type of submarine was developed by Germany's Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft AG (HDW) that Italy builds under license. They feature diesel propulsion and an additional air-independent propulsion (AIP) system using Siemens proton exchange membrane (PEM) compressed hydrogen fuel cells. These are the first submarines to use this type of AIP system.

From Naval Today.com:
After the launching, outfitting works will be continued on the unit at the Integrated Naval shipyard in Muggiano (La Spezia), leading to its delivery scheduled in the second half of 2016.

The submarine “Romeo Romei”, as its twin unit “Pietro Venuti” launched last October at the Muggiano shipyard, will feature highly innovative technological solutions. It will be entirely built with amagnetic material, using the most modern silencing techniques to reduce its acoustic signature.

“Romei” has a surface displacement of 1,509 tonnes, an overall length of 55.9 meters, a maximum diameter of 7 meters, and can exceed 16 knots underwater. It has a 27-person crew.