The executive agreement was signed in Moscow on Friday between Iran Hormoz Company and Russia’s Rosatom Project Company for the construction and establishment of four advanced third-generation nuclear power plant units in the coastal town of Sirik in the southern province of Hormozgan.
Nasser Mansour Shariflou, representing Iran Hormoz Company on behalf of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI), and Dmitry Shiganov, representing REP Company, a subsidiary of the state-owned Rosatom, inked the 25-billion-dollar deal in the presence of Kazem Jalali, Iran's ambassador to Russia.
The mega project, which is to be implemented in the Kuhestak district of Sirik region in Hormozgan Province on a 500-hectare plot of land, will have the capacity to produce a total of 5,020 megawatts of nuclear power.
In the signing ceremony, it was announced that the agreement was inked between the two friendly countries, the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Russian Federation, to develop joint cooperation in the peaceful use of nuclear energy.
Reports said the site selection studies have been completed, and engineering and environmental studies, along with a portion of site preparation activities, have been carried out and are in the process of being finalized.
Under an intergovernmental agreement, Russia is contracted to build eight nuclear power plants in Iran, including four in Bushehr.
IAEO head Mohammad Eslami had earlier announced the commencement of the project after a meeting with Rosatom CEO Alexey Likhachev in Moscow on Wednesday, emphasizing the strategic cooperation between Tehran and Moscow in nuclear energy development.
“We have good relations with Russia regarding cooperation in the construction of nuclear power plants," Eslami said after the signing of a memorandum of understanding on the construction of small-scale nuclear power plants (SMRs) in Iran.
"It was necessary to review and strengthen this process, and also to take a new step in line with the Organization’s 20-year strategic plan."
Highlighting Iran’s plans to generate 20,000 megawatts of electricity through the development of nuclear power plants, the AEOI chief told reporters that the construction of the second and third units of the Bushehr nuclear power plant is currently underway by Russia.
Eslami underlined that the project is a priority for both Tehran and Moscow, adding that the emphasis of the two countries’ presidents has accelerated its progress, and ongoing negotiations will help facilitate and advance these joint efforts.
Press TV