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Iran unveils the dates on building new nuclear reactors, amount of uranium enrichment

Politics Materials 20 November 2014 12:56 (UTC +04:00)
The head of the Atomic Energy Agency of Iran says that Iran and Russia signed an agreement on building two new nuclear reactors in the coming years, one of them is scheduled to start construction in 1.5 years
Iran unveils the dates on building new nuclear reactors, amount of uranium enrichment

Tehran, Iran, Nov. 20

By Dalga Khatinoglu - Trend:

The head of the Atomic Energy Agency of Iran says that Iran and Russia signed an agreement on building two new nuclear reactors in the coming years, one of them is scheduled to start construction in 1.5 years.

Giving a live interview on Channel Two TV broadcast Nov. 19, Ali Akbar Salehi the head of the Atomic Energy Agency of Iran said that both of new reactors are to be constructed in the Busheher nuclear power plant based on a 1992 agreement.

The Russia started re-construction of Busheher nuclear power plant in 1996, based on 1992 agreement between two countries.

German companies started construction of the Bushehr nuclear power plant in 1975 but the work was stopped in 1979 after the Islamic Revolution of Iran.

Expressing Russia's delay to complete the first reactor of Busher, Salehi said that reconstruction of a nuclear reactor is harder than building a new one, but the second reactor is projected to be complete in 18 months. Russia completed the first reactor of Busher in 2011, 15 years after starting the construction and 19 years after sealing the agreement.

Salehi said that according to the projected plans, Iran needs 20,000 megawatts of nuclear power and has held "hard" negotiations with Russia since 2013 to realize the plan. He

added that the construction of the second new nuclear reactor would start two years after starting the development of first new one.

He underlined that beside reactor construction agreement, Iran and Russia signed a protocol about the needed nuclear fuel for new reactor.

Russia has committed to supply nuclear fuel for the first reactor, which was commissioned in 2011 for ten years. Russia delivered 82 tons of nuclear fuel in 2008 and 30 more tons in May 2011 to Iran.

The head of the Atomic Energy Agency of Iran argued that signed reactor constructions with Russia, enforces Iran's position in nuclear talks with P5+1, namely, in practice, Iran needs the capacity to supply nuclear fuel for two reactors in the next eight years.

Salehi said that we need 190,000 separative work units (SUW) uranium enrichment capacity annually by 2022.

Before him, the Supreme Leader of Iran Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said in July that Iran needs 190,000 SUWs enrichment capacity, without mentioning when Iran will need it.

Salehi said that the first reactor of Bushehr had produced 7 billion KWh of electricity until several months ago. Iran's annual power output is 70,000 megawatt, equals 263 billion KWh.

Iran and P5+1 (the US, Britain, France, Russia and China plus Germany ) is negotiating to reach a comprehensive nuclear deal by Nov.24.

You can follow him on Twitter @dalgakhatinoglu.

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