Construction of unit 2 at the Bushehr NPP in Iran is being resumed, according to Rosatom Director General Alexey Likhachev. He also confirmed that unit 1 continues to operate at full capacity.
Russia is assisting with the construction of units 2&3 at the Bushehr NPP, where the first unit with a 915 MWe VVER reactor has been in operation since 2011. Construction of the Bushehr NPP began in 1975 with a West German company but stopped in 1979 after the start of the Islamic revolution. In 1992, Russia and Iran signed an agreement to continue construction of the station using Russian VVER-1000 technology. Unit 1 was officially transferred to Iran in September 2013. First concrete for unit 2 was poured in 2019 and the core catcher was installed in 2024.
However, work on the new units was paused after Russia pulled out more than 600 of its employees from the plant after it was targeted four times by strikes since the US and Israel launched their attack on Iran on 28 February. Following the tentative ceasefire in April Iran asked if work could resume on the plant.
Likhachev noted that the construction site is gradually returning to active work. Currently, about 2,200 employees from Iranian contracting organisations have already returned to the site. He also reported that the situation in the area of the plant remains calm, and there have been no attacks on facilities near the plant. Following the evacuation of Russian specialists Likhachev said 20 volunteers had remained at the plant and four more people at the central office in Tehran.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on 15 April that Russia expects that there will be no more attacks on the Bushehr nuclear power plant. He added that Moscow hopes for a complete cessation of attacks on energy infrastructure and expects that Bushehr will no longer be targeted.
Likhahev emphasised that the project remains a priority for Rosatom and Russian enterprises continue to produce equipment. “For unit 2, the reactor is already more than 60% ready, the steam generators are 50% complete. We plan to begin shipping key equipment next year. We continue casting and forging metallurgical blanks for the equipment of unit 3,” he said.
He added that Rosatom is ready to return Russian employees to Iran in full as soon as the risk of a resumption of the conflict is eliminated.
