Iran's nuclear plant prepares for operation

TEHRAN (FNA)- Iran's Atomic Energy Organization (IAEO) spokesman Mohsen Delaviz Sunday announced that the country's first nuclear power plant in the southern port city of Bushehr will undergo a pre-launch stage on Wednesday.

""The pre-launch stage of Bushehr nuclear plant will start on Wednesday in the presence of the Head of Russian Federal Atomic Energy Agency Sergei Kiriyenko and Iran's Atomic Energy Organization Chief Gholam Reza Aqazadeh."" Delaviz noted.

Kiriyenko is to pay a visit to Iran on February 25th to hold talks on the country's Bushehr nuclear power plant.

He will discuss the process of building Iran's first nuclear plant with the officials of the IAEO and its affiliated organizations.

The IAEO's spokesman also announced that the Iranian and Russian officials will hold a news conference Wednesday.

Earlier in February Russia's nuclear power chief said his country plans to start up the Bushehr nuclear reactor in Iran this year.

Kiriyenko told Russian media that assuming nothing unexpected happens, the launch will go as planned before the end of 2009.

He said there are no unresolved questions with his Iranian counterparts regarding the technical start-up.

Iran and Russia signed a contract for completion of the nuclear facility's first unit in January 1995 in Tehran. According to the deal Russia is obliged to provide Iran with the required nuclear fuel and train Iranian nuclear experts.

The contract costs some 1 billion dollar that 850 million dollars of which is for the plant's reactor.

Russia's state-run Atomstroyexport is responsible to build of the power plant's first unit. In February 1998 Russia and Iran agreed on Moscow's cooperation in providing equipments and completion of the project.

The project was expected to be accomplished on July 8 of 1999, but its running date has been postponed several times.

Russia started delivering nuclear fuel to Iran in mid December 2007 under an agreement between the two countries and the IAEA supervision.

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