SK Engineering & Construction (SK E&C) has teamed up with a Turkish firm for a multi-billion-dollar project to build and operate new power plants in Iraq, the South Korean firm said Saturday.

Officials from the South Korean builder said the company has successfully purchased a 30 percent stake in UNIT International S.A., Turkey's energy giant, one day after the two companies signed the deal in Istanbul.

Under the deal, the South Korean firm will join the Turkish firm's ongoing project to build and operate five new gas-fired power plants in Iran, said to be worth US$4.2 billion in total.

SK E&C President Ahn Jae-hyun (second from L) signs a contract for his company's purchase of a 30-percent stake in UNIT International S.A. in Istanbul, Turkey on March 17, 2017. (Yonhap)

SK E&C will likely be in charge of building the five new power stations, company officials noted.

The power stations are set to have a combined generation capacity of 5,000 megawatts, making them Iran's largest privately developed power plants, they added.

SK E&C is one of a few South Korean companies to have made a massive investment commitment to Iran since the Middle Eastern country was removed from years of international sanctions over its nuclear ambitions.

Earlier reports suggested the Iranian government has agreed to fully compensate the Turkish firm for any loss should the country be again placed under international sanctions. (Yonhap)

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