Calik Enerji, started the works on Sunday, for the construction of a 1,250 megawatt power plant in Khairat, 30 km southeast of Kerbala, Iraq, to boost its electricity output.
The Turkish company, won the $445.5 million contract in October, and is expected to finish the project in April 2013, according to Iraq's Electricity Ministry, reports Reuters.
The plant consists of 10 gas turbines, each producing 125 MW, or 1,250 MW in total. The turbines are among 56 gas turbines the ministry purchased from General Electric in 2008.
More than eight years after the U.S.-led invasion, Iraq's national grid only supplies a few hours of power each day. Intermittent electricity is one of the public's top complaints.
Calik also won a $388.5 million contract last month to build a power plant with a total capacity of 750 MW near Mosul in northern Iraq.