Moscow, Tehran Close to Signing Deal on Purchase of Heavy Water

Moscow and Tehran are close to signing a deal on the sale of 40 tons of Iranian heavy water to Russia, head of Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) Ali Akbar Salehi said Saturday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — In late May, Russian Envoy to International Organizations Vladimir Voronkov said that Russian nuclear agency Rosatom was considering the possibility of buying Iranian heavy water.

"Steps are to be finalized for sale of 40 tons of heavy-water reactor to Russia and the deal will be signed in the very near future," Salehi said, as quoted by the IRNA news agency.

According to Salehi, deputy head of the organization Behrouz Kamalvandi may in the near future visit Moscow to discuss concluding the issue with the Russian side. There is also an option that a Russian delegation will arrive in Iran, he said.

According to the nuclear deal agreed last year, Iran must store no more than 130 tons of heavy water during the first year after signing the agreement.

AEOI announced on June 1 plans to sell 92 metric tons of Iranian heavy water to the United States, Russia and several European countries.