Iran start loading uranium fuel rods into nuclear reactors

Iran started completely loading fuel into its only nuclear reactor on Tuesday, after a leak in the Russian-built reactor's basin late the process for months, state media reported. Iran's Atomic Energy Agency (IAEO) said a series of test had been run and that it had currently started loading 163 fuel rods into the reactor's core. Russia is supply the uranium fuel for the plant, for 10 years, at an enrichment level well below what is wanted for a nuclear weapon. The 1,000-megawatt nuclear power plant is expected to start generate electricity in about three months, more than 35 years after the start of building, IAEO head Ali Akbar Salehi told state television. The original service provider was a German company.

The plant, located near the Persian Gulf city of Bushehr, is not extensively regarded as a threat by Western countries, which fear Iran is creation a nuclear weapon, something Iran denies. Rather, it is a symbol of the Islamic Republic' s progress in spite of sanctions against the country. At the start of fuel loading tests in August, the U.S. State Department said it did not view the plant as a proliferation risk but harassed its continued concerns about Iran's nuclear program. At that time, Israel, which says Iran is planning to create a nuclear weapon, also said it was not particularly worried about the plant, but required Iran to stop enriching uranium. The loading of fuel is oversee by International Atomic Energy Organization, Iranian officials said.