A unit of General Electric Co. will invest at least $3 billion to build power plants in Turkey and the Middle East with its Turkish partner Gama Holding after buying a stake in Gama's energy company. The agreement prevents the partners from saying how much GE Energy Financial Services paid for 50 percent of Gama Enerji AS, James Burgoyne, the unit's managing director, said at a news conference announcing the purchase in Istanbul yesterday. General Electric, the world's biggest maker of power-plant equipment, is tapping into demand for electricity in Turkey, a European Union candidate, that's growing at 8 percent a year. The government says Turkey needs $130 billion of investment by 2020 to build enough generating capacity. “The increase in electricity consumption is a clear indication of Turkey's growth potential,” Burgoyne said. Gama Enerji is the “ideal platform for GE to grow in Turkey and in neighboring countries.” Gama Enerji targets a generating capacity of 4,000 megawatts in Turkey from its current 1,150 megawatts, Ergil Ersu, the unit's chairman, said. The company will expand the number of hydro and gas-fired plants it already operates and plans to build coal-fired plants and wind farms, he said. Gama Enerji may also bid for Turkey's state-run electricity-distribution grids, which the government said it will sell next year, Ersu said. The energy unit may enter a Turkish auction in February of licenses to build as many as six nuclear power plants, Burgoyne said. Gama Enerji is also considering holding an initial public offering in the coming period, Ersu said