This photo provided by Hanwha Corporation E&C Division shows a view of apartment buildings built as part of the Bismayah New City project in Iraq. (Image courtesy of Yonhap)
SEOUL, Dec. 6 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea’s Hanwha Group said Friday it seeks to resume a major city development project in Iraq, which has been suspended for two years due to unpaid construction fees.
Hanwha Corporation E&C Division, the group’s construction arm, said it recently signed an amended contract with Iraq’s National Investment Commission (NIC) worth 14.71 trillion won (US$10.3 billion) for the resumption of the Bismayah New City project, which remains halted since October 2022.
The new contract is about 390 billion won larger than the original agreement, with the construction period newly stipulated as ending on Dec. 31, 2032.
According to Hanwha, the agreement requires approval from Iraq’s Council of Ministers to take effect. The terms of the contract may be altered or canceled during the approval process.
First commissioned in 2012, the project involves the construction of 100,000 housing units and various social infrastructure facilities over a 5.5 million square-meter site near Baghdad.
Due to financial difficulties on the Iraqi side, the project, however, faced challenges, with Hanwha having suspended construction. Hanwha has engaged in negotiations with the NIC for the resumption of the project.
So far, construction of 30,000 housing units has been completed, with 21,480 units handed over to NIC for local residents.
The South Korean government has actively supported efforts to revive the project, having dispatched high-level delegations to the Middle Eastern country for related discussions over the past two years.
(Yonhap)
