BAE gets Malaysian boost

BAE Systems has received a Letter of Intent (LoI) from the Government of Malaysia for the procurement of two frigates for the Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN). The project represents a highly significant industrial partnership between the Malaysian and British maritime industries. BAE Systems, through its Naval Ships business, based in Glasgow, Scotland, will collaborate with Malaysia?s Labuan shipyard on this major project. Discussions on the design, specification and construction of the vessels have been underway for some years. The RMN currently operate two frigates built in the BAE Systems facility at Scotstoun in the 1990s.

The contract for the two ships is expected to create substantial employment opportunities in Malaysia, and, in addition, will help sustain several hundred engineering and manufacturing jobs on the Clyde. The ships’ design and manufacture will be carried out at BAE?s Govan or Scotstoun yards, with the assembly and launch taking place in Malaysia.

The Malaysian Government has nominated Labuan Shipbuilding and Engineering in Malaysia (LSE) as the lead Malaysian facility. LSE will work with BAE Systems Naval Ships and important technology transfer will benefit the Malaysian shipyard and the Malaysian maritime industry in general. The Labuan Shipyard will be undertaking significant elements of the construction, assembly and the launch of the vessels and a Malaysian supply chain will contribute via the integration of ?Made in Malaysia? items into the two frigates”.

The ships will be fitted with state-of-the-art systems that will be fully interoperable with the current RMN frigates.