Lisa Karpova
Pravda.Ru
The Director of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI), Fereydun
Abasi, has reported the preliminary launch of the Bushehr nuclear plant
(in southern Iran) in the near future.
The Persian senior
official said that after several tests were done at the plant, Iranian
experts will implement the project with preliminary operations starting
between January and February of next year.
This month, the
mission of the Russian contractor in charge of and responsible for the
construction of the Bushehr plant concluded, and is handing over control
of the facility, Abasi added. Therefore it is necessary to prepare the
conditions for the development of the plant.
Abasi said that
the Bushehr plant will generate from 4,000 to 6,000 megawatts of
electricity, therefore it is necessary to provide the necessary
infrastructure for the formation of human resources, as well as training
and research for the power plant.
In 1975, the German
consortium Kraftwerk Union began construction of the Bushehr plant, but
was paralyzed after the Islamic Revolution in Iran in 1979, the
Iran-Iraq War and by heavy U.S. pressure.
Subsequently, in
1995, Iran and Russia signed an agreement under which the said plant
would be completed in 1999. However, the project was delayed several
times until last September 12, 2011, when it was officially launched.
Financial problems, inflation, and the need to integrate German and
Russian technology made the project difficult for participants. The
constituent parts have also different origins: 24% of the parts are
German in origin, 36% are Iranian-made while 40% are Russian-made.
The Bushehr plant will satisfy about 2% of Iran's projected electricity
consumption. The Bushehr nuclear power plant is under the full
supervision of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).