BHIC to focus on Royal Malaysian Navy biz with commercial sector slowdown

PETALING JAYA: Boustead Heavy Industries Corp Bhd (BHIC), which is eyeing to secure RM1 billion of jobs from the Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN) in the immediate term, remains focused on its prospects with the RMN given the slowdown in the commercial shipbuilding sector affected by the downturn in the oil and gas (O&G) industry.
BHIC and its associates currently has an order book of RM6.2 billion.
BHIC looks to continue capitalising on the prospects offered by the RMN’s 15 to five transformation programme, which should translate into the commissioning of new vessels and more maintenance, repair and overhaul works for BHIC’s shipyards. The 30-year programme, of which the first phase will span 2020-2030, will see the number of classes of ships reduced from 15 to five but the number of ships increase.
Chairman Tan Sri Lodin Wok Kamaruddin said it has taken several actions to insulate itself against the economic shortfalls of the declining price of the crude oil by focusing more on its business with the RMN.
“For the time being, we want to hold back from undertaking projects in the commercial sector and focus more on delivering to the RMN and build our expertise and efficiency so that when there is a turnaround in the O&G sector later on, then we’re more prepared to take on the challenges in meeting the requirements of that sector,” Lodin told a press conference after BHIC’s AGM here yesterday.
“We’re not totally giving up, but we’re filling the gaps and improving ourselves to become a cost effective builder. We’re not going to wait until the price go up. We have our hands full presently. We want to make sure we service the RMN first,” said Lodin.
However, he sees the possibility of a resurgence in the demand for service in the O&G sector with the current oil price now reaching US$70 a barrel.