WarSclerotic

Iran official: Bushehr nuclear plant will be operational by end of August – Haaretz Daily Newspaper | Israel News.

Foreign Minister Ali-Akbar Salehi says ‘all technical problems have been resolved’ at the plant; Bushehr will be ready for connection to electricity network by end of August.

By DPA

The nuclear power plant of Bushehr in southern Iran was expected to become operational by the end of August, Foreign Minister Ali-Akbar Salehi said Monday.

“All technical problems have been resolved and the plant would be secure for connection to the national electricity network after the fasting month of Ramadan, or the end of August,” Iran’s semi-official ISNA news agency quoted Salehi as saying.

The Russian-built 1,000-megawatt reactor was opened after more than three and a half decades last August and scheduled to go on line before the end of that year, but its launch has been delayed several times.

Due to technical problems, operators in February decided to swap out the facility’s entire fuel core, and finished restoring the fuel in May.

	The reactor building of the Bushehr nuclear power plant is seen, just outside the southern city of Bushehr, Iran.
	Photo by: AP

The delays prompted speculation about the cause of the problems, ranging from the Stuxnet computer worm virus to alleged sabotage by Russia.

Critics in Iran said it would have taken less time to build a new nuclear plant than waiting for the Russians to complete the Bushehr facility.

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