New CEO at BHIC
SHAH ALAM: New CEO at BHIC. Boustead Heavy Industries Corporation (BHIC), has appointed Sharifuddin Md Zaini Al-Manaf as its new chief executive officer effective on April 1, the company says. BHIC in a statement said Sharifuddin was the former CEO of Orkim Sdn Bhd, a Malaysian state owned investment company providing tanker shipping services in the Asia-Pacific region.
Sharifuddin, 50, hold a bachelor’s degree in aeronautical engineering from Imperial College London and brings to Boustead a wealth of management experience amassed over more than 20 years working in the oil and gas and the shipping industries.
“BHIC is confident that with his experience and management capabilities, Sharifuddin will steer the organization through these challenging times and navigate it towards a path of profitability and growth, ” the company said.
Shariffudin replaced Ahmad Ramli Mohd Nor, 75, a former RMN chief, who was the managing director of BHIC since 2005. Ahmad Ramli was redesignated from MD to a non-executive chairman in April, last year before resigning from that position in November. It is likely as part of restructuring of BHIC, the MD post is now redesignated as CEO. Malaysian Defence report on the changes at BHIC last year
As the CEO of BHIC, Sharifuddin will have to break the financial and technical log-jam of the LCS programme, with the first ship now only expected to be ready for service in 2023. Based on the conversations I had with industry sources, I am inclined to believe that the 2023 deadline will also be missed. For context read this
With the country hit by the economic tsunami as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, it is unlikely that the government can spare too much cash for the project. It is too big to fail though so perhaps Boustead may need to find another source of funding to complete the project and billed the government after all six ships are commissioned into service.
Apart from the LCS, the new BHIC CE0 will also have to deal with the soon to be ending Integrated Service and Support contract for the Prime Minister-class submarines. The previous administration had said the contract will be an open though restricted tender for the ISS contract when it lapsed next year. The change of government may favour BHIC JV but it is unlikely that another company can do the job even if an open tender is called. It will be just a matter of the government getting BHIC to agree to the price for the new ISS contract.
— Malaysian Defence
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