Date:18/12/2007 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2007/12/18/stories/2007121855581300.htm

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Russia ships nuclear fuel to Iran’s plant

Vladimir Radyuhin

MOSCOW: Russia has begun nuclear fuel shipments to Iran in a major breakthrough that opens the way for starting up the 1000-MW reactor it is building at the Bushehr atomic power plant in eight months time.

The Russian company building the Bushehr reactor, Atomstroiexport, said on Monday the first batch of low-enriched uranium-235 fuel was delivered to the Bushehr plant on December 16 under the control of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

The rest of the 180 fuel pellets would be sent to Bushehr in the next two months, Atomstroiexport said on its website.

Russia’s Foreign Ministry said the fuel is being supplied six months before the start-up date. This means Iran may generate its first electricity from a nuclear reactor next August.

The fuel will be under IAEA safeguards and will be returned to Russia for reprocessing, the Foreign Ministry said in a statement released on Monday.