Tehran building fully Iranian nuclear power plant, atomic chief says

Iran is building a fully domestic nuclear power plant using indigenous fuel and engineering, the country’s nuclear chief Mohammad Eslami said on Sunday, calling it a symbol of national pride and industrial strength.

“Relying on domestic capabilities, we are building a fully Iranian nuclear power plant with indigenous fuel,” Eslami said on state television.

“This is a source of national pride and a reflection of the country’s industrial strength, driven forward by the nation’s engineering community.”

Eslami ruled out any rollback of uranium enrichment, saying “a return to zero in the nuclear industry is neither logical nor meaningful.”

He also said the Bushehr plant is being constructed with foreign cooperation and that Iran will pursue more power plants in partnership with international companies.

"As part of the plan to develop 20,000 megawatts of nuclear power, we will utilize the capacities of qualified countries and companies," Eslami said.