With the presence of the Undersecretary of Defense, Gabriel Gaspar; the Commander in Chief of the Navy, Juan Andrés De La Maza, and the general manager of FISA, Francisco Sotomayor, ExpoNaval 2022, the largest naval and defense industry meeting in Latin America, which is being held at the Valparaiso Port Passenger Terminal. The event, which began today, Tuesday, November 29 and will end on Friday, December 2, presents this year a rich program focused on innovation. The International Naval Exhibition and Congress for Latin America 2022, which has been held every two years since 1998, has established itself as the most important naval industry event in the region, being a meeting point for navies from 35 countries from Latin America, Europe, America, Asia and Oceania. It also brings together the main representatives of the naval industry worldwide, such as shipbuilders, naval aviation, UAVs, information technology (IT), security and telecommunications, among others. According to the Commander-in-Chief of the Navy, Admiral Juan Andrés De La Maza, EXPONAVAL is also “a sign that we truly believe that the ocean is the future, the Pacific Ocean that is here, in front of us. We are accompanied by the Commanders-in-Chief of the Navies of Argentina, Uruguay and Brazil, as well as the Director General of Logistics of the Brazilian Navy and Ministers from Finland and Great Britain, which shows the interest of different maritime countries to be present at this exhibition”. Admiral De La Maza also highlighted the important presence of the ASMAR and Gustavo Márquez shipyards, from Colombia, “a state shipyard like ours, which will soon undertake a project for the construction of a frigate”; this, as an example of the Continuous National Shipbuilding Plan promoted by the Institution, which seeks to replace the Navy’s ships with new units built in Chile. Proof of this is the scientific ship “Cabo de Hornos” and the current construction of the icebreaker “Almirante Óscar Viel”, the first ship of these characteristics built in South America, which will be launched next December 22 in Talcahuano. The international fair covers an area of 14.5 thousand square meters, a space in which various public and private institutions promote commercial exchange and technological solutions in naval defense and maritime security. It is worth mentioning that the fair has 90 exhibiting companies, has defined more than 300 business meetings and expects to receive around 20 thousand professional visitors. At the place, the companies have shown local developments of goods, products and services oriented to the industry, presenting new technologies in Chile that will be a new step to the national development and a strong impulse to innovation. “The planning and implementation of this meeting, which is 24 years old, allows us to approach new knowledge and technological developments, generating a space for the interaction of professionals from all over the world who work in areas related to the naval activity. Today we have great expectations in terms of attendance. This will be one of the largest events of the naval industry and maritime security in terms of participation, with the presence of armed forces, suppliers and industry professionals from various countries. Therefore, we invite everyone to be part of this great fair and international congress”, said Francisco Sotomayor, general manager of GL events Chile. INTERNATIONAL CONGRESS This year, ExpoNaval will open its congress on Wednesday, November 30 with the keynote lecture “The implications of being a maritime power”, given by the former Chief of the Royal Australian Navy, VA ( R ) Michael Noonan. Later, at 10:30 hrs, panel 1 “The relevance of being a maritime power” will begin, which will be given by Martin Connell, Second Lord of the British Royal Navy; Fernando Wilson, academic of the Chilean Naval War Academy; and Alessio Patalano, professor at King’s College London, United Kingdom. The panel will focus on the promotion of new technologies, increased job creation and the training and development of human capital. Then, at 2:30 p.m., panel 2 “Chile and its National Ocean Policy: Are we a Maritime Power?” will begin, where information will be provided on the country’s current progress in naval terms, its advantages and opportunities for the future. This will be led by the director of Environment and Ocean Affairs, Julio Cordano; the former president of Empresa Portuaria San Antonio, Franco Brzovic; the director of Maritime Safety and Operations, Commodore Carlos Fredes; and the academician of the Chilean Naval War Academy, Matías Purcell. On Thursday, at 10:00 hrs, ExpoNaval will continue with the conference “Challenges of shipbuilding and its contribution to the national industry”, where the importance of renewing auxiliary ships, logistic units and frigates will be discussed, encouraging investment and public-private collaboration. On this occasion, Jonathan Walton, representative of Babcock Shipyards (UK); Pablo Niemann, Vice Admiral of the Chilean Navy; and Olivier Michel, Latin American Sales Representative of Naval Group, will present a new perspective. ExpoNaval, organized by FISA, of the GL events Group, presents this year a space between supply and demand for the best development of the naval industry in Chile, providing great opportunities to establish business relationships and expand contact networks. Likewise, it seeks to reaffirm the important naval role in Chile, show local advances in goods, products and services oriented to the industry, introduce new technologies not available in Chile to the market, exchange experiences, technologies and international developments with local agents, and deliver effective solutions to the Latin American Navies.