Iranians visit Russia over nuke plant

[maddezmom]

Iranians visit Russia over nuke plant By VLADIMIR ISACHENKOV, Associated Press Writer
2 minutes ago



MOSCOW - Nuclear energy officials hosted an Iranian delegation Wednesday for talks on the construction of a Russian-built plant that has fallen behind schedule because of what Moscow said were delays in payments by Tehran.

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"The main issue on the agenda of today's meeting is to discuss the crisis situation connected to the lack of funding of the project by the Iranian side," said Pavlov, who heads the department in charge of the plant's construction at Atomstroiexport.

The Iranian delegation's visit follows Moscow's warning last month that Iranian payment delays would push back both Bushehr's planned September launch and the uranium fuel deliveries that had earlier been scheduled to begin this month. Iran has been eager to get the uranium fuel, but Russian officials said it would only be delivered six months before the plant's launch.

Pavlov said that Russia was continuing construction work under the $1 billion contract, but added that the talks would focus on "the impact of insufficient funding on the schedule of putting the reactor in operation."

more:http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070307/ap_on_re_eu/russia_iran_nuclear

[Eugene]

1. AP: Iran, Russia Nuclear Talks Fruitless

Iran, Russia Nuclear Talks Fruitless


Friday March 9, 2007 12:01 AM

By MIKE ECKEL

Associated Press Writer

MOSCOW (AP) - Russian and Iranian nuclear officials failed for a second day Thursday
to resolve a dispute over the construction of a Russian-built nuclear energy plant
that has fallen behind schedule because of what Moscow said were delays in payments.

A delegation led by the vice president of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran,
Mohammed Saeedi, is in Moscow to try to resolve the dispute. The disagreement could
push back the Bushehr plant's planned September launch as well as the uranium fuel
deliveries that had been scheduled to begin this month.

Irina Yesipova, a spokeswoman for Atomstroiexport, the Russian state-run company
building the plant in southern Iran, told The Associated Press that negotiators had
met all day Thursday but reached no agreement.

"Talks will likely continue in the morning (Friday)," Yesipova told AP.

-snip-

Full article: http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,,-6467010,00.html