Govt finalising procurement of three littoral mission ships, says Defence Minister

JOHOR BARU: The government is finalising the procurement of three littoral mission ships (LMS) this year, which is expected to be completed within three years, says Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin.

The Defence Minister added that the government would also be focusing on the completion of the five littoral combat ship (LCS) projects that are scheduled to start their sea trials in November this year.

“There are three components to purchasing a ship; we have to have the design, the development, and the equipment before we can start with the sea trial.

“If the development has reached 80%, then we can start with the sea trial once we have all the electrical distribution systems and weapon systems in place.

“The first ship will begin the sea trial and harbour acceptance tests in November this year.

“So in total, we have eight projects, including three LMS, which we are currently finalising. If we can finalise this procurement this year, we can expect the ships to be commissioned by the Royal Malaysian Navy within three years,” he said.

He said this when met by reporters after the Armed Forces Family Housing (AFFH) allocation handover ceremony and breaking fast with Navy officials at their Johor Baru base in Permas Jaya, here, on Sunday (March 17).

He added that the remaining four ships would also undergo similar trials upon reaching 85% completion.

Asked whether the ministry will be filling up the Armed Forces Fund Board (AFFB) chief executive officer and chairman positions, Mohamed Khaled said that the ministry will do so once a suitable candidate has been identified.

“We have no intention of prolonging the matter,” he said.

Meanwhile, during the programme, Mohamed Khaled handed over a mock cheque worth RM69.5mil to the Navy, which is part of the total RM400mil allocation given by the government to the Defence Ministry for this year’s budget.

“This year is the largest allocation given by the government to repair AFFH; previously, the allocation was only around RM100mil.

“Last year the allocation given was RM100mil, but we were given an additional RM200mil allocation, so this year the Federal Government gave RM400mil,” he said.

Mohamed Khaled also said that his ministry also has one of the largest allocations in Budget 2024, with around RM2.8bil allocation allocated involving procurement and upgrading of current assets.

“This includes the submarine of the Perdana Menteri-class that will be upgraded and the retrofitted TLDM squadron that will be conducted this year,” he informed.