KUALA LUMPUR: The mobilisation phase for the littoral combat ship (LCS) project is running smoothly, says Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein (pic).
The Defence Minister said this phase, slated for June to December this year, involved a number of efforts by the government especially his ministry, the Royal Malaysian Navy, the Armed Forces Fund Board (LTAT) and Boustead Naval Shipyard Sdn Bhd (BNSSB).
"The mobilisation phase is running in line with the recommendations of various parties, including the Cabinet and Public Accounts Committee (PAC)," he said in a statement on Sunday (Oct 2).
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A number of matters were concluded in the first three months of the phase, he added.
"On the commercial side, two things are going on. BNSBB has concluded talks with 145 local vendors and 42 overseas original equipment manufacturers (OEMs).
"The local vendors and OEMs have pledged to support ... BNSBB to resume this project.
"Efforts to end the involvement of middlemen Contraves Advanced Devices (CAD) dan Contraves Electrodynamics Sdn Bhd (CED) are currently being pursued.
"It will enable BNSBB to negotiate with OEM and vendors directly. This can reduce the cost of ship equipment," he said.
BNSBB was currently negotiating with nine banking institutions to restructure its debt, Hishammuddin added.
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"We expect negotiations to be concluded within the mobilisation phase," he said.
According to Hishammuddin, detailed design was also being discussed with France's Naval Group.
"This is ... to ensure that anything decided upon will be able to meet the needs of the Navy as an end user.
"Naval Group (will) send its technical team to perform an audit on the detailed design in October," he said.
In terms of government to government arrangements, Hishammuddin said representatives from the French government have met him and provided a written commitment to resume and solve the LCS project.
"This is an important development and will help greatly, given that the majority of Naval Group is owned by the French government," he said.
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Construction of the LCS would resume once negotiations had concluded and every agreement finalised within the mobilisation phase, he said.
"We expect the first LCS will be completed within two years.
"It is a realistic timeline as after the end of the mobilisation phase, all parties have 14 months to ensure that the ship is completed and on the water undergoing trials such as Harbour Acceptance and Sea Acceptance.
"This timeline must be adhered to by all stakeholders, especially BNSBB," he said.
As instructed by the Cabinet, Hishammuddin said a report on the negotiation process during the mobilisation phase will be tabled on schedule.
"As previously mentioned, the Navy has requested the acquisition of littoral mission ship (LMS) batch two while waiting for the LCS to be completed.
"The ministry has asked the Economic Planning Unit and the Cabinet to implement this project," he said.
In conclusion, all parties were not looking back but working hard to ensure the Navy had sufficient assets, Hishammuddin said.
"The ministry will continue to give its full cooperation in any investigation by the authorities," he said.
