LONDON -- Iran's Posts, Telephones and Telegraphs Ministry (PTT) is inviting bids for the mandate of a financial advisor on the sale of a second GSM (global system of mobile communications) license, IRNA said.

According to Middle East Economic Digest (MEED), several international banks and consultancy firms have already expressed an interest in the award.

The magazine understood that Pricewaterhousecoopers, BNP Paribas, HSBC Investment Bank and a European company identified as EPD attended a preliminary meeting with the PTT in Tehran in mid-April.

A contract to operate a second GSM network, covering the installation and operation of 4 million new cellular lines, is expected to be made within months after the appointment of a financial advisor.

At present, Iran's mobile phone network covers just 1.2 m subscribers. But according to the Geneva-based International Telecoms Union (ITU), the number of subscribers is expected to reach 10 m by the end of Iran's Third Development Plan in 2005.

Iran's plans also include expanding the more than 9 million fixed phone lines, which includes the complete overhaul of the country's aging network infrastructure.

MEED reported that an international tender for the expansion of Tehran's existing mobile phone network, that will see the installation of 3 million lines across the country, is also set to be issued later this year.

It further suggested that the establishment of an independent regulatory authority would be another milestone in the program to reform the telecoms sector.