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Malaysia Littoral Combat Ship Programme Makes Headway

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MALAYSIA’S Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) programme, or Maharaja Lela-class frigate is making headway with the name and launch ceremony of the third LCS vessel and the class’ lead vessel successfully completing its maiden sea-going test in late January.

Today, the Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN) held the naming ceremony and official launching of the third LCS at Lumut Naval Shipyard (LUNAS), taking the namesake of Sharif Mashor–a renowned warrior of Sarawak state in the 19th century. The ceremony was attended by the Sarawak’s governor Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar, and officiated by his spouse Patinggi Fauziah Mohd Sanusi while also in attendance were deputy defence minister Adly Zahari, RMN chief Admiral Zulhelmy Ithnain and LUNAS CEO Azhar Jumaat.

In a speech by the deputy defence minister, he stated that this vessel is the first in the class of five LCS vessels to be fully built in Malaysia by LUNAS, a feat which reflects on the local talent and capability in realising the national defence industry strategy. “In this context, LUNAS plays a crucial role as a key player in the country’s maritime industry, driving the development of the local vendor ecosystem, particularly in shipbuilding and ship repair,” he said.

In late January, the lead ship Maharaja Lela undertook its first sea trial to test the electricity generation, propulsion and related systems onboard before undergoing sea trials later in April.

Defence minister Khaled Nordin said, “Although there has been a delay compared with the original schedule, LCS 1, which stood at 82.90% progress as of last December, has been successfully launched and is now in the phase of installation and integration of the ship’s main systems. Specifically for the Maharaja Lela (LCS 1), the targeted progress should have been 96.52%, while the actual overall progress of the programme has reached the 75.75% mark instead of the planned 81.57% mark.

The deputy minister also acknowledged that delays still plagued the embattled LCS programme but emphasised that the defence ministry would not compromise on specifications as the ships must meet operational and safety standards for the next three decades.

According to reports from LUNAS to the LCS programme team, commissioning of the Maharaja Lela (LCS 1) was revised to this December, while the commissioning of the Raja Muda Nala (LCS 2) had been rescheduled to August 2027. Following that, the scheduled commissioning of the Sharif Mashor (LCS 3) remains on schedule for December 2027 while Mat Salleh (LCS 4) is planned for August 2028 and April 2029 for Tok Janggut (LCS 5).

While the total value of the project for five vessels is supposed to be US$2.85 billion with US$2.11b already spent, amounting to 74% of the budget which are all now paid based on actual progress on the ships. Additionally, oversight mechanisms of the programme were improved. “At the same time, monitoring meetings will now be held monthly, compared with the previous schedule of at least twice a year. LUNAS has also stated that it will proceed with 24-hour construction by implementing a three-shift work system to ensure that its commitments are fulfilled,” the minister added.–shp/adj/dl (Pix:LUNAS, RMN)