Some 1,200 Chinese workers stranded in a conflict zone in Iraq are being evacuated to safety after several previous attempts to extract them failed.

Workers from the China Machinery Engineering Corp (CMEC) hired to fix a power plant project have been hemmed in at a camp in Samarra, Salaheddin Province for over two weeks due to battles between government forces and Sunni insurgents.

The first batch, over 40 people, has been transferred to Baghdad via helicopters, according to a report by China Central Television Thursday.

A source from CMEC, who asked not to be named, told the Global Times Thursday that the situation is now under control. "The camp is enclosed, with Iraqi government forces and local security personnel standing guard outside," he said, adding there are sufficient food and supplies in storage.

"The company has done everything possible to try to bring them to safety, and major progress was made yesterday," the source said, but declined to reveal any details, citing security concerns.

Foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying told a press conference Thursday that the Chinese government is coordinating with Iraq's military and government on the evacuation plan. "The Chinese government will spare no efforts to ensure the evacuation is conducted in a safe, orderly and timely way," she said.

"My father told me the first batch of workers, around 100, will leave for Baghdad by bus today," the daughter of one of the stranded Chinese workers, surnamed Zhao, told the Global Times Thursday.

Zhao said the situation had been tense, after an explosive device was found only 80 meters from the camp several days ago.

China has a sizeable business presence in Iraq following the US invasion in 2003. China's foreign ministry puts the number of Chinese nationals in Iraq at more than 10,000.

Most of the workers are employed by State-owned oil companies, while others are involved in infrastructure construction and private businesses.

Except for those stranded in Samarra, most of the Chinese nationals and projects are in Baghdad and southern Iraq, which are still controlled by the Iraqi government.

Asked whether China will pull out Chinese nationals in Iraq as it did in Libya in 2011, Hua said the Chinese government is closely following the security situation in Iraq and making timely assessments.

In February 2011, China evacuated hundreds of thousands nationals from Libya using a combination of charter planes, cruise ships and warships.

"As the situation evolves, we will take measures accordingly to protect the safety and legitimate interests of Chinese enterprises and nationals," she said.

A staff member at PetroChina's branch in Basra, southern Iraq, told the Global Times that his company has already made a contingency plan, and some non-essential personnel have left, although the oil field is still operating as normal.

"I heard from our security staff that several bullet-proof vehicles will be dispatched to our camp next week, in case we need evacuation," he said, adding there is no immediate plan for departure.

PetroChina has prepared several evacuation plans, including leaving by air or taking other routes to Iran or Kuwait, the employee said.

Another Chinese worker at an oil field in southern Iraq also told the Global Times that no evacuation notice was issued from the embassy.

Gao Fei, a professor specializing in consular protection, told the Global Times that over the past week the deterioration in Iraq's security situation has exceeded Beijing's expectations.

"Washington's reluctance to intervene reflects its lack of confidence in the situation. What's more, the insurgency has further aggravated the tension between Iraq's Shiites, Sunnis and Kurds," Gao said.

"Beijing has an ambiguous position over whether to pull out its nationals."

However, Gao said he does not expect a large-scale evacuation this time. "The situation in Libya back then was much more chaotic. In Iraq, most Chinese nationals work for State-owned companies, which makes it much easier for each company to organize an orderly evacuation if the situation deteriorates," he said.

China is Iraq's largest oil client, and Chinese State-owned oil companies have the biggest share in Iraq's oil exploitation.