Iran's nuclear power plant, now under construction in the southern city of Bushehr, is expected to become operational by February 2003, reported the Iranian News Agency (IRNA), citing press reports.
The Persian daily Jam-e Jam quoted Khalil Mousavi, head of the public relations office of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI), as saying that construction of the plant is currently carried out at full speed by Russian engineers.
Once operational, the plant will be capable of generating some 1000 megawatts of nuclear power during the first phase, Jam-e Jam said.
Construction of the plant is being carried out in accordance with a plan which Russia signed in September 1998, committing itself to finish the project over a 52-month span, said the paper.
The project was initially considered for completion by the German Siemens Company in 1978, but the company pulled out of its commitments after the Islamic revolution in 1979 and after sanctions were imposed on the Islamic republic, said IRNA.
Mousavi told the paper that the German company is suing Iran before an international tribunal claiming that the Islamic Republic failed to live up to its commitments.
Iran, in return, filed a countercharge against Germany to compensate for losses it incurred from the breach of agreement, he added.
The United States has repeatedly voiced fierce opposition to the construction of the plant, claiming Iran could use it to produce weapons of mass destruction.
Iran has countered the US opposition by opening the site to observers from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) which has confirmed many times that the plant is used for civilian purposes -- Albawaba.com
© 2001 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
