Iran offers to create regional organization on nuclear energy
By Sara Rajabova
Iran's nuclear agency chief urged Gulf countries to create a regional organization for the control of atomic energy.
Head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) Ali Akbar Salehi has proposed the formation of a nuclear cooperation organization to alleviate concerns of Persian Gulf.
Salehi voiced Tehran's preparedness to conduct expert and technical talks with the Persian Gulf states over the safety of Bushehr nuclear power plant, Press TV reported.
Salehi suggested a non-governmental organization (NGO) be set up to resolve any doubts and reservations about Iran's civilian atomic activities scientifically.
Should the NGO operate satisfactorily, it can be developed into a Persian Gulf nuclear cooperation organization, he said.
He further noted that Iran is ready to allow nuclear experts from the Persian Gulf littoral states to visit Bushehr power plant.
Salehi reiterated that Bushehr nuclear power plant is among the most sophisticated power plants of its kind, and operates under the full supervision of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Russian contractors and experts from Iran's Nuclear Safety Center.
Iran and the Russian contractor of the Bushehr nuclear power plant, Atomstroyexport, have assured the international community that the facility is fully compliant with high-level safety standards and the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). The plant is also operating under the full supervision of the IAEA.
Iran officially took over the first unit of the plant from Russia for two years in September2013, the final acceptance and submission for industrial operation is scheduled for 2015.The Bushehr NPP became officially operational and connected to Iran's national grid in September 2011.
Construction of the NPP in Bushehr started in 1974 by the German Kraftwerk Union AG (Siemens / KWU), but came to a start during the 1979 Islamic Revolution in Iran.
In August 1992, an agreement was signed between the Governments of Russia and Iran on the construction of a NPP, and in January 1995 a contract was signed to complete the construction of the first power unit of the plant.