MP: Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant phases 2, 3 construction starts

Hadi Beigi-Nejad, a member of the Presiding Board of the Iranian Parliament’s Energy Committee, told Fars News Agency that the 10- and eight-year contracts to develop the second and third phases have been signed with Russians.

He added the foundation of the second phase is under construction and work on phase 3 has also started.

Beigi-Nejad stressed the need for Iran to diversify its power generation resources, and called on the Parliament and government to accelerate construction of the two phases.

The power plant is located 17 kilometers southeast of the city of Bushehr along the Persian Gulf coast in southwestern Iran.

It became operational in 2011 and reached its full capacity the following year.

Russia's State Atomic Energy Corporation, also known as ROSATOM, started preparation of the site of two new units of the nuclear power plant, with a combined capacity of 2,100 MW, in September 2016.

On March 14, 2017, the construction phase formally started. Phases 2 and 3 are planned to be completed in 2024 and 2026.

In November 2019, the concrete-casting operation of Phase 2 began in a ceremony attended by the chief of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI), Ali Akbar Salehi, a number of state and provincial officials and lawmakers as well as managers of the Russian companies involved in the project.