Russian Nuclear Specialists Head to Iran for Planned Bushehr Repairs
Rosatom says the number of its experts at the plant will rise from 47 to 150 as maintenance begins on the first reactor unit.
Rosatom Director General Alexey Likhachev says the number of Russian specialists at Iran’s Bushehr nuclear power plant will rise from 47 to 150 for scheduled maintenance of the first unit. The work includes replacing some fuel assemblies, with the required nuclear fuel already delivered. Rosatom is also involved in construction of the plant’s second and third units.
**TEHRAN —** Specialists from Russia’s state nuclear corporation Rosatom are expected to travel to Iran as part of scheduled maintenance work at the first unit of the Bushehr nuclear power plant, according to Rosatom Director General Alexey Likhachev.
Likhachev said that 47 Rosatom specialists had so far returned to the Bushehr facility, and that their number was expected to increase to 150. His comments were made on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in New Delhi, according to Iran’s IRNA news agency, which cited Russia’s RIA Novosti.
The planned work will include the replacement of fuel assemblies at the operating plant. Likhachev said Rosatom specialists would begin scheduled maintenance and servicing from mid-September, corresponding to the months of Shahrivar and Mehr in the Iranian calendar.
He also said that nuclear fuel needed to replace part of the plant’s fuel assemblies had already been delivered to Bushehr.
Likhachev had previously described the situation at the facility as calm. He referred to discussions about the status of the Bushehr plant during a meeting between the presidents of Iran and Russia on Tuesday, September 10, on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit in Bishkek.
The latest comments indicate that Rosatom’s role at Bushehr involves both maintenance of the first operating unit and construction activity linked to the plant’s second and third units. Likhachev said the company’s personnel were working on the construction of those units while also beginning the scheduled repairs for the first unit.
The announcement concerns planned maintenance and fuel-assembly replacement at the Bushehr facility. The supplied report does not provide further details about the expected duration of the work, the specific number of fuel assemblies to be replaced, or the timetable for the arrival of the additional specialists.