Littoral combat ship completion not dependent on probe, govt in talks for new missile system

Sunday 11 Oct 2026

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KOTA TINGGI (Oct 11): The establishment of a Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) to investigate delays in the Royal Malaysian Navy’s littoral combat ship (LCS) project is not a determining factor in ensuring the prompt completion of the country’s defence assets.

Defence Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin said the shipbuilder had been instructed to expedite work and ensure that further delays do not occur.

“The completion of LCS 1 is a separate matter and does not depend on the RCI. Otherwise, the ship would still not be completed. That is why we have asked the shipbuilder to speed up the work and ensure there are no further delays,” he told reporters.

He was speaking after attending the first harvest of the KayTi JanaVeteran Ginger Project and the launch of JanaKomuniti at Telok Sengat Farm and Felda Air Tawar here on Sunday.

Mohamed Khaled was responding to a call by Pasir Gudang Member of Parliament Hasan Karim for the investigation into the LCS project to be expedited and not made dependent on the RCI, following the Auditor General’s Report (LKAN) 2/2026, which found that the project was 7.55% behind schedule as of June 25.

Lumut Naval Shipyard (Lunas), the company responsible for building Malaysia’s first LCS, has set April 2027 as the revised delivery date for LCS 1 to the Defence Ministry under Phase 1.

The new date was set after Lunas informed the ministry that it could not provide a commitment or guarantee that the ship would be delivered by December this year.

On the investigation, Mohamed Khaled said the matter should be left to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission and the relevant authorities.

He also referred to court action previously taken against a former Navy chief who had also served as the managing director of Boustead Naval Shipyard Sdn Bhd in connection with the LCS project.

Meanwhile, Mohamed Khaled said the government is in negotiations with several shortlisted countries to procure a surface-to-surface missile system for LCS 1 to replace Norway’s naval strike missiles.

He said the procurement would not depend on the Budget 2027 allocation, as the ministry wants to ensure that LCS 1 would not take too long to be fully equipped.

He said the ship is currently equipped with surface-to-air missiles, anti-submarine warfare capabilities and an electronic jamming system, with surface-to-surface missiles being the remaining capability yet to be installed.

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