The government of Australia has named Raytheon (NYSE: RTN) the sole bidder on a potential $1.5 billion contract to develop a land-based aerial defense platform, Reuters reported Monday.

Jamie Freed writes Marise Payne, Australia’s defense minister, said the National Advanced Surface to Air Missile System seeks to replace the country’s three-decade-old short-range air defense platform that is set to be retired in the next 10 years.

“A modern and integrated ground-based air defense system is needed to protect our deployed forces from increasingly sophisticated air threats, both globally and within our region,” Payne added.

The government will issue Raytheon’s Australian arm a limited request for tender by the first half of 2017 to develop the NASAMS platform for the country’s defense force, the Australian Defense Magazine reported Monday.

Raytheon Australia said its proposal is based on the NASAMS platform the company developed with Kongsberg and that it will collaborate with CEA Technologies to explore the potential integration of the Medusa system with NASAMS.

Christopher Pyne, Australia’s minister for defense industry, said the government plans to award a risk mitigation contract to Raytheon Australia to conduct workshops in order to involve local businesses in the project and look at the potential of the Hawkei mobility vehicle from Thales‘ Australian business as a platform for NASAMS’ missile launchers, the magazine added.