Shafaq News- Baghdad

South Korea’s Hanwha announced on Wednesday that it will withdraw from Baghdad’s Bismayah residential project and lay off its Iraqi employees, blaming the National Investment Commission (NIC) for failing to pay $270 million owed for completed work.

In a letter addressed to the NIC, Hanwha pointed to “serious administrative and financial difficulties” resulting from delayed payments. The company had reportedly continued covering employee salaries and administrative expenses since March 2020 despite delays in official project approvals and payment for completed work.

The company added that the NIC had pledged over the past seven years to settle the outstanding dues but had yet to do so, leaving Hanwha unable to maintain its employment arrangements. Employees were notified that their contracts would end on Oct. 16, with Oct. 15 set as their final working day.

The NIC has yet to comment on the letter.

Speaking with Shafaq News, some residents of Bismayah accused unnamed parties of seeking to undermine the development, which they described as a successful housing project that has attracted lower-income Iraqis, and urged the government, parliament and relevant authorities to intervene.

Located about 10 kilometers southeast of Baghdad, Bismayah spans 1,830 hectares and was planned to accommodate roughly 600,000 people in 100,000 housing units, alongside basic infrastructure including electricity, water and roads. The NIC selected Hanwha to develop the project after evaluating bids from several international companies.

The project had previously faced financing difficulties affecting apartment buyers. In July, a source told Shafaq News that hundreds of Iraqis had been unable to complete purchases after Rafidain Bank suspended housing loans because of a funding shortage. Applicants also complained about delays in allocation procedures, with some accusing the NIC of imposing an additional “allocation” requirement that they said was not included in their purchase contracts.

In August, the NIC announced the release of long-awaited Rafidain Bank housing loans for thousands of eligible buyers after Prime Minister Ali Al-Zaidi ordered officials to resolve years of financing delays.

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