Iran’s lone nuclear plant has been temporarily closed for unknown reasons, according to official television.
Gholamali Rakhshanimehr, a representative of the state-owned electric firm Tavanir, stated on a television program that the Bushehr plant closure began over the weekend and will last several days.
Without going into detail, he stated that there could be power disruptions as a consequence. This is the very first time the facility in Bushehr (Iran’s southern port city) has been shut down due to an emergency. It was launched in 2011 with the assistance of Russia. As a nuclear nonproliferation safeguard, Iran is supposed to return spent fuel rods from the reactor to Russia.
Tavanir had issued a statement earlier on Sunday stating that the nuclear reactor was being repaired, but without providing any other information. It stated that the repairs would not be completed until Friday.
The only nuclear power plant in Iran has been temporarily shut down, state TV reported. https://t.co/7ceTnjfD1h
— DW News (@dwnews) June 20, 2021
It Appears The Iranians Can’t Get Parts For their Plant
In March, nuclear weapon official Mahmoud Jafari claimed the reactor could shut down; this is since Iran is unable to obtain parts and equipment from Russia due to US banking restrictions implemented in 2018.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) monitors Bushehr, which is fuelled by uranium generated in Russia, rather than Iran. The International Atomic Energy Agency confirmed receiving reports regarding the project, but refuses to elaborate.
This is the first time Iran has reported an emergency shutdown of the Bushehr plant, which went online in 2011.https://t.co/EDZdeT3s3I
— Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (@RFERL) June 21, 2021
Bushehr, on the shore of the Persian Gulf’s northern reaches, started building in the mid-1970s under Iran’s shah. The factory was regularly targeted in the Iran-Iraq war after the 1979 Islamic Revolution and was eventually finished by Russia.
The facility, which is located on active tectonic plates and was designed to resist large earthquakes, has been jolted by tremors on a regular basis. In recent days, no big earthquakes have been observed in the area.
Pompeo Speaks on The Current Administrations Failings in Iran
Pompeo stated that the Trump administration left the present administration with a lot of leverage, including several thousand sanctions on Iranian leaders as well as the infrastructure.
They formed an alliance of Gulf states, as well as our partner and friend Israel. The purpose of this alliance was to help keep Iran contained and stop them from obtaining the cash, equipment, and other items we observed. You may recall a few years ago when they flew pallets of cash to Iran, Pompeo said.
#Iran's nuclear plant in Bushehr undergoes an emergency shutdown. i24NEWS' Middle East correspondent @ariel_oseran joins @benitalevin
with the latest: pic.twitter.com/bZRnr9SFbL— i24NEWS English (@i24NEWS_EN) June 20, 2021
Pompeo added that the government has been granted a tremendous amount of power to exert sanctions on Iran. You mentioned enrichment, and it’s clear that they’re dead set on putting pressure on the US so that they can extract more concessions at the table.
They just elected Ebrahim Raisi as their successor earlier this week. He has tens of thousands of people’s blood on his hands. This is not someone with whom we should be conversing. It’s not a regime with which we should be involved. We should mount the most intense pressure campaign possible to compel this government to change its ways.
