KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 4): The Ministry of Defence is in the final stages of evaluating three options for a surface-to-surface missile system after the Norwegian government cancelled the export permit for the naval strike missile.

The ministry said the selection of the system would take into account operational requirements, integration compatibility with naval vessels, costs and the procurement timeline.

"A final decision will be made once an option has been agreed upon and the procurement agreement has been signed,” the ministry said in a written reply to an oral question from Datuk Wira Dr Ku Abd Rahman Ku Ismail (Perikatan Nasional-Kubang Pasu) in the Dewan Rakyat on Wednesday.

He had asked Defence Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin to state the government's measures to obtain the naval strike missile system from another country following the Norwegian government’s cancellation of the export permit.

In a related development, the overall physical progress of the construction of all five Royal Malaysian Navy littoral combat ships (LCS) stood at 80.72% as of Sept 25, representing a delay variance of 9.19% against the original target of 89.91%.

According to the ministry, the latest delivery schedule guaranteed by the contractor, Lumut Naval Shipyard (Lunas), stipulates that the first LCS will be delivered in April 2027, followed by the second in August 2027 and the third in December 2027.

The fourth LCS is scheduled for delivery in August 2028, while the fifth is set for April 2029.

As for the first LCS, KD Maharaja Lela, the vessel is currently undergoing harbour acceptance trials after completing several shipyard acceptance tests.

The ministry said the trials involve testing the main machinery, power generation and propulsion systems to evaluate and verify the vessel's performance and system capabilities before the sea acceptance trials are conducted together with the Royal Malaysian Navy.

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