Tehran Thanks Russia For Years-Long Cooperation In Nuclear Energy At Bushehr-2 Ceremony

MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 10th November, 2019) Tehran is grateful to Russia for years-long help and cooperation in developing the country's nuclear energy industry, Vice President Ali Akbar Salehi said on Sunday as Iran started pouring concrete at the second unit of the Bushehr nuclear power plant (NPP), built with Russia's help.

At a special ceremony, Salehi praised long-lasting cooperation between the two nations, noting the Soviet Union's contribution to Iran's industrialization.

"These were the Russians who gave us the first steel mill. So they helped us enter the gate of becoming an industrialized [nation]. It was with the help of Russia. They helped us enter the realm of the modern technologies. It was with the help of Russia that we managed to produce the first power plant in the country. We thank the Russian nation and government for their cooperation with us," Salehi said at the ceremony, broadcast by the Press tv news network.

The construction of the plant began in 1974 by Germany's Kraftwerk Union AG (Siemens/KWU) but was suspended after the Federal Republic of Germany joined US sanctions against Iran in 1980 following the Islamic Revolution.

Russia became the only country that agreed to help Iran to complete the construction, facing the difficult task of integrating Russian equipment into German construction designs.

The first unit of the Bushehr NPP was connected to the national energy grid in September 2011 and reached full capacity the following year. To date, the NPP has already delivered tens of billions of kilowatt-hours of electricity and allowed Iran to prevent the release of several tens of millions of tonnes of greenhouse gases.

Back in November 2014, Russia and Iran agreed on the joint construction of Bushehr's second and third units, known as the Bushehr-2 project. Two years later, the project was officially launched.

The second unit is expected to become functional in 2024 and the third one in 2026.