Babcock International has been named as the Commonwealth’s preferred tenderer for the ADF’s Project JP9101 requirement to upgrade and sustain the Defence High Frequency Communication System (DHFCS) for at least the next decade.

The tender will see Babcock Australasia collaborate with Lockheed Martin Australia to deliver an upgraded and robust sovereign DHFCS to continue to provide a long-range communications capability for the ADF for 10 years, plus four two-year options.

“I am absolutely delighted that we have been selected as preferred tenderer for this internationally significant capability programme for the Australian Government,” David Lockwood, Chief Executive of Babcock International said in a December 6 company release. “Babcock has a strategic and expanding role in providing these critical services to three of the Five Eyes intelligence alliance partners, where interoperability and interchangeability are becoming vital.

“This selection reinforces confidence in our ability to grow our defence business in target international markets, and to build on Babcock’s capability in digital defence, an area of increasing importance to our global customers,” he added. “Fit for today and ready for tomorrow, our collaborative approach will deliver a secure, resilient and advanced high-frequency communications solution for the ADF.”

The tender will now proceed to contractual negotiations before a contract is awarded.