Ericsson and Nigeria's Econet Wireless have signed a GSM expansion contract valued at US$110 million. When completed, the expansion will result in greater geographic coverage for the operator and will double the network capacity.

Ericsson will deliver core and radio network equipment. The first phase of the project is being implemented now and shipments for the second phase are beginning immediately.

Econet currently has more than one million subscribers nationwide. Capacity boosts will be especially important in high traffic areas like Lagos, Port Harcourt, Abuja and Kaduna, among other densely populated areas.

"Ericsson has established itself as the leading supplier of mobile solutions globally, and they are also the number one provider in sub-Saharan Africa," said Econet's acting CEO, Boye Olusanya. "To help us deliver the quality of service our customers expect of us, we chose to work with this industry-leading equipment and solutions provider."

Africa is a region well suited to mobile or satellite communications, and sophisticated cellular services are capturing significant market share against a backdrop of fixed line networks.

"We have an excellent business relationship with Econet Wireless Nigeria, a company that is committed to the attainment of world-class standards and a focus on providing quality telecommunications solutions for Nigerians," said Jan Embro, head of Ericsson for the sub-Saharan African region.

 "Ericsson's on-going commitment to providing telecommunications infrastructure in Nigeria makes this contract another exciting step in that important mission."