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Iran: Bushehr Nuclear Reactor Fully Loaded

   VOA News 27 November 2010

Photo: AP

   A  worker rides a bike in front of the reactor building of the Bushehr
   nuclear  power plant, just outside the southern city of Bushehr, Iran,
   26 Oct 2010

   Iran's nuclear chief says the country's first nuclear reactor is fully
   loaded and could be operational within months.
   Ali  Akbar  Salehi  told  state-run  television  Saturday  workers had
   finished  loading  fuel  roads  into  the  core of the Bushehr nuclear
   plant, and that it could start generating electricity by February.
   Salehi said officials are just waiting for the water in the reactor to
   heat to the right temperature before moving ahead.
   Iran   first  started  loading  fuel  rods  into  the  1,000-megawatt,
   Russian-built  reactor  in August, but the process encountered several
   delays, pushing back its scheduled November start-up.
   Western nations accuse Iran of pursuing nuclear technology in order to
   make nuclear weapons - a charge Tehran denies.
   While  Western  officials  do  not  see  the  Bushehr power plant as a
   threat,  they  worry any progress in Iran's nuclear program could help
   Tehran get closer to becoming a nuclear-armed power.
   The  United  Nations  has  already  slapped  Iran  with four rounds of
   sanctions over its refusal to stop enriching uranium - a step that can
   produce weapons-grade nuclear material.
   Earlier  this  week, Iran's nuclear chief denied claims that technical
   problems set back Iran's efforts to enrich uranium.
   Salehi  said  Tuesday the country's atomic program was not affected by
   the  Stuxnet  computer worm, stating Iran's enemies "failed to achieve
   their goal."
   Salehi also said Iran will begin producing nuclear fuel for a research
   reactor  next  September.  He called production of 20 percent enriched
   uranium a "firm response to the West."

   Some information for this report was provided by AP and Reuters.
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