Swedish telecoms group Ericsson has signed a US$58 million GSM expansion contract with Hebei Posts & Telecommunications Administration (HPTA). Ericsson said it was the fourth expansion phase of the HPTA network. The expansion was due to be completed by the end of September and is to raise the capacity of HPTA's GSM network to 1.2 million subscribers. Ericsson said it had supplied the province's first mobile communications system, an analogue system, in 1987.