KUALA LUMPUR: The Defence Ministry is in the final stages of evaluating three surface-to-surface missile (SSM) options for the Royal Malaysian Navy following Norway's cancellation of the export permit for the Naval Strike Missile (NSM) system.
"The Defence Ministry is currently in the final stages of examining three surface-to-surface missile system options proposed by the Navy," its Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin told the Dewan Rakyat.
"The selection will take into account operational requirements, compatibility with the ships, costs and procurement timelines.
"A final decision will be made once the options have been agreed upon and the procurement agreement has been signed," he said in a written parliamentary reply dated Wednesday (Nov 4).
Datuk Wira Dr Ku Abd Rahman Ku Ismail (PN-Kubang Pasu) wanted to know the government's next course of action following Norway's cancellation of the NSM export permit.
He also sought updates on the construction progress and delivery schedule of the five littoral combat ships (LCS) for the Navy.
On the LCS project, Khaled said overall construction progress for the five vessels stood at 80.72% as of Sept 25, compared with the targeted 89.91%.
"Based on physical progress as of that date, overall construction of the five LCS vessels has reached 80.72%... representing a delay variance of 9.19 percentage points," he said.
He said contractor Lumut Naval Shipyard (Lunas) had guaranteed a revised delivery schedule, with the first vessel expected in April next year.
This will be followed by LCS2 in August and LCS3 in December next year.
"LCS4 is scheduled for delivery in August 2028, followed by LCS5 in April 2029," Khaled added.
Khaled said the first vessel, KD Maharaja Lela, was undergoing shipyard sea trials after completing several harbour acceptance tests.
"The sea trial phase is intended to test and verify the performance and capabilities of the ship's systems before the Sea Acceptance Trial is conducted with the Navy," he added.
