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Russia's state nuclear corporation Rosatom is in the process of building two VVER-1000 units at the Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant in Iran. There is already one operating unit at the site.

In comments at an information day, reported by Rosatom's in-house publication Strana Rosatom, Likhachev said of the Bushehr project "it's definitely not the time to abandon it … Iran's leadership has no intention of giving in. For now, judging by the situation at a glance, the conflict will be protracted".

In other comments, reported by Russia's official Tass news agency on Wednesday, Likhachev said "the situation is very complicated and tense, but it is still under control. The strikes and explosions occur at a certain distance from the construction site and the operating power unit at Bushehr. Yes, it is very close - some windows were blown out by the shock wave, and some areas, including residential ones, were covered in dust. But the parties to the conflict are refraining from direct attacks on the Bushehr plant, at least for now".

Background

The USA and Israel launched attacks on Iran on 28 February, saying they were targeting Iran's leadership and its military infrastructure. Iran has retaliated and the conflict is on-going. The International Atomic Energy Agency's Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi has urged a return to diplomacy, saying that "to achieve the long-term assurance that Iran will not acquire nuclear weapons and for maintaining the continued effectiveness of the global non-proliferation regime, we must return to diplomacy and negotiations".

The first unit at the Bushehr plant, on the Persian Gulf coast, was connected to the grid in 2011. It is a Russian-designed VVER unit with a capacity of 915 MWe. Two further units featuring VVER-1000 units are under construction - unit 2 had first concrete poured in 2019 and the core catcher installed in 2024. In January the third tier of the inner containment building for unit 2 was installed.

At an event at the International Atomic Energy Agency's General Conference in September 2024, Iran suggested unit 2's target date for operation was 2029. According to Russia's Rosatom, unit 3 is also under construction.

In September 2025, Rosatom and the Atomic Energy Organisation of Iran signed a memorandum of understanding for cooperation in the building of small modular reactors in Iran. The country says it has an ambition for 20 GW of nuclear energy capacity by 2041.