Iran nuclear power plant operating again following emergency shutdown

Iran’s sole nuclear power plant is back online following an emergency shutdown two weeks ago, state TV reported.

The report quoted Mostafa Rajabi Mashahdi, a spokesman for the country’s energy ministry, as saying the Bushehr plant “returned to production energy” after the completion of needed maintenance.

Mr Mashahdi did not elaborate but last week, Iran’s nuclear department said engineers were working to repair the plant’s broken generator.

Authorities earlier this year had warned of Bushehr’s possible closure because of US sanctions barring Iran from procuring equipment for repairs.

Bushehr is fuelled by uranium produced in Russia, not Iran, and is monitored by the United Nations’ International Atomic Energy Agency.

Three versions of domestically-built centrifuges are shown in a live TV programme from Natanz, an Iranian uranium enrichment plant (AP)
Three versions of domestically-built centrifuges are shown in a live TV programme from Natanz, an Iranian uranium enrichment plant (AP)

Construction on Bushehr, on the coast of the northern reaches of the Persian Gulf, began under Iran’s shah in the mid-1970s.

After the 1979 Islamic Revolution, the plant was repeatedly targeted in the Iran-Iraq war.

Russia later completed construction of the facility.

The 1,000-megawatt plant feeds the grid with enough energy for a tiny part of Iran’s nationwide 64,000-megawatt consumption.

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