Bushehr NPP should be controlled by specialists

Control over the construction and operation of the Bushehr nuclear power plant must be made by highly-qualified experts, not members of the Iranian Parliament, said the director of the Russian Center for Public Policy Research Vladimir Yevseev.
“Not parliamentarians, but professionals must control on the construction of the Bushehr nuclear plant, said the director of the Russian Center for Public Policy Research Vladimir Yevseev. How could the Iranians evaluate the work and skills of Russian specialists, who are above their level of qualification.”

This week a special commission was established in the Iranian parliament to investigate the cause of suspending the Bushehr nuclear power plant’s activity.

The special commission will investigate the causes of suspending the Bushehr nuclear power plant’s activity, the issues of improving the station, financial problems, the agreement signed with Russia and other problems of the Bushehr nuclear power plant. The special commission will ascertain the reasons of removing the uranium fuel from the reactor of the Bushehr nuclear power plant.

The commission plans to complete investigation within two months.
Yevseev said “a situation of absurdity creates”, because the established commission intends to actually implement dual control, although Russia is interested in providing security.

“Despite that the Iranians have created for Russia an extremely difficult situation for ensuring safety of NPP, Russian specialists are doing everything to ensure the safety of reactor, he said. – The equipment that is out of order, and that slowed the launching of the station was manufactured in Germany in the 60s of last century. This is the reason created by the Iranian side, not Russia.”

To include the Bushehr NPP in Iran’s power grid had been planned by the end of 2010. In December, the press service of AtomStroyExport reported that the loading of nuclear fuel was successfully completed at the site of Bushehr nuclear power plant. However, due to new technical problems, the station has not been incorporated into the power grid.

In late February, because of a technical problem with one of the cooling pumps, Russia demanded to unload fuel from the reactor in Bushehr, and the Iranian side agreed with this requirement for security reasons.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that the problem of Russian-built nuclear reactor in Bushehr is only technological and will be resolved within two to three months.

On Friday, April 8, AtomStroyExport announced loading nuclear fuel into the reactor in NPP, RIA Novosti reported.

Yevseev believes that the commission may in some way put pressure on the Russian side for the speedy launching of the NPP.

“Such pressure is possible, and I think Russia will be firm to defend its point of view on security, said the expert. – Russia, who has foreign contracts, would not want to damage its interests in other places for this reason. Therefore, I think Russia will be firm on this issue in the face of Rosatom.”

Bushehr is the first nuclear power plant in Iran and throughout the Middle East. Bushehr nuclear power plant began to be built by the German Kraftwerk Union concern in 1974, but in 1980 it terminated the contract because of Western German government’s accession to the U.S. embargo on supplying equipment to Iran. Since the 1990s, construction of the power plant has been carried out by the Russian specialists.

Aug.25, 1992 Russia and Iran signed an agreement to continue constructing nuclear power plant. In January 1995, a contract to complete the works on the first power unit was signed, and in 1998 construction management was transferred to AtomStroyExport.

The Bushehr plant was originally scheduled to be completed in 1999 but the work has repeatedly been postponed in connection with financial and technological difficulties, and also because of several suspensions of construction under U.S. pressure.

Source: Trend