Eurasia Press & News
TEHRAN (Fars News Agency) Russia has delivered a second consignment of nuclear fuel to Iran’s Bushehr power plant, the deputy head of the Iranian Atomic Energy Organization said on Friday.
“The second consignment of fuel for the Bushehr nuclear plant arrived in Iran on Friday,” Ahmad Fayazbaksh said, adding that the delivery was the same amount supplied in the first consignment on December 17.
Russia will deliver a total of 82 tons of nuclear fuel to Iran over two months in eight separate consignments.
On December 20 a spokeswoman for the Russian contractor on the flagship project, Atomstroiexport, confirmed that it would take at least a year to start the power station.
“We can predict that the Bushehr station will be launched no earlier than the end of 2008 due to the current situation,” Irina Yesipova told AFP.
Iran had said it hoped the 1,000-megawatt plant in the southern city of Bushehr could come on line within three months at up to 200 megawatts before being cranked up to full capacity nine months later.
“Six months after the end of deliveries of fuel we will start tests with the fuel. When the tests are successfully completed we can launch the station. I can’t say how long the tests will last,” Yesipova said.
Russia began sensitive deliveries of nuclear fuel to Bushehr after repeated hold-ups and an earlier call by the United States for the project to be suspended.
