Ericsson won a contract with Greek operator Wind Hellas to supply 5G core equipment, the second major deal announced by the vendor in the market.

The latest deal covers 5G core infrastructure supporting standalone (SA) and non-standalone (NSA) modes, with the vendor also extending its contract to supply BSS equipment.

In a statement, Ericsson said it would transform Wind Hellas’ existing packet core and signalling infrastructure, opening the way to deployment of the operator’s SA 5G network.

Wind Hellas CEO Nassos Zarkalis said deployment of a 5G core would create “new possibilities for Greece and create value to society at large, businesses, and our customers, by delivering enhanced high-speed services and compelling experiences”.

Greece is still in the process of allocating 5G spectrum to the three operators in the country, with Wind Hellas estimating the network technology would be available to customers in Q1 2021, following the completion of an auction process due to occur this month.

Earlier this year Ericsson inked a deal with Wind Hellas rival Cosmote to become the sole supplier of 5G RAN equipment for the Deutsche Telekom-controlled operator.

The vendor’s website today (1 December) showed it had 117 5G contracts in place, with 70 live networks across the world using its equipment for the latest generation of network technology.