South Korea's Hanwhaa Engineering and Construction Company has halted work in "Bismaya City", Iraq's largest housing project, after the government failed to pay its dues for two years, according to the official Alsabah newspaper.

Hanwha has already built nearly 30,000 of the project's 100,000 houses before it decided to stop last week after it did not receive payments for 2019 and 2020, the paper said, quoting Safa Hadi, director of the administrative division in Iraq's National Investment Commission.

"The company has informed us that it has decided to halt work in the project because it has not received payments for 2019-2020," Hadi said.

He said several meetings with Hanwha have failed to produce results and warned that a cash crunch caused by weak oil prices could threaten other housing projects which involve the construction of nearly one million units in the Arab country.

OPEC member Iraq awarded the $7.7-billion contract to Hanwha in May 2012 and work began in 2013 but was obstructed by internal hostilities.

Located nearly 10 km southeast of the capital Baghdad, the project is spread on an area of around 18 sq km and was supposed to be completed within seven years.

The city will accommodate nearly 600,000 people and it also comprises power and sewage networks, communications systems, roads, car parks, schools and universities, health centres and other facilities.

(Writing by Nadim Kawach; Editing by Anoop Menon)

(anoop.menon@refinitiv.com)

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