Kiriyenko: The date of the launch of Bushehr NPP will be put off till the end of this year at earliest

14.03.2007 // Interfax

The date of the launch of Bushehr NPP will be put off for two months because of non-financing by the Iranian side

The Bushehr NPP construction will be delayed for at least two months because of non-financing by the Iranian side, while the nuclear fuel will be supplied half a year before the launch of the plant, head of Rosatom Sergey Kiriyenko said to journalists in Bari.

It is hard to say for what a period this project will be delayed: the period of delay will be equivalent to the period of non-financing. Unless the financing and the equipment are received now, the delay will make up two months at least, Kiriyenko said.

According to the supplementary agreement signed in Sept 2006, the plant is to be launched in Sept 2007 while the fuel is to be supplied in Mar. At the same time, the agreement stipulates that the schedule will be observed only in case of stable monthly financing worth $25mln at least and timely equipment deliveries from third countries.

«The Russian side has not changed its fuel supply commitments. The fuel will be supplied six months before the launch,» Kiriyenko said. He noted that this is not a political action but a technical requirement. «We regard Buishehr as our own plant and all the requirements we set to that plant are similar to the ones we set to Russian NPPs.»

Kiriyenko said that he was surprised at the Iranian’s position on the financing of the project and confirmed that despite the problems Russia continues the construction.

«I am astonished. Perhaps, the Iranian side is not fully aware of the situation, but it seems that they have lost their interest in the project: they have not paid us a single penny since mid Jan,» Kiriyenko said.