Iranian Nuclear Energy Strategy to Focus on Small Modular Reactors

Iranian nuclear energy strategy will focus on the development of small modular reactors (SMRs), the President of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI), told Sputnik on Friday.

LONDON (Sputnik) — Iranian nuclear energy strategy will focus on the development of small modular reactors (SMRs) and Tehran is currently assessing potential partners for cooperation in the field in addition to Russia, Ali Akbar Salehi, the President of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI), told Sputnik on Friday.

"We have not entered into serious negotiations with any country with regard to SMR's but this is our strategy. So we are working on it and making the assessment as to whether it is feasible for us or not and then we will look around and see which countries are willing to co-operate with us in the development of SMRs," Salehi said.

SMRs are smaller, factory produced units designed to provide electricity in areas that are isolated or may have smaller electric grids, or where water and space are limited. SMR energy production can range up to 300MW, under current designs.

Earlier in the day, Salehi told delegates at the World Nuclear Association (WNA) symposium in London that Iran was aiming to increase its nuclear electricity production from its current 1000MW of electricity to 30,000MW working in co-operation with the Russian state-owned nuclear energy corporation Rosatom.

Rosatom is currently working to construct the second stage of Iran's Bushehr nuclear power plant. Russia and Iran signed a contract for the construction of two 1,000-megawatt reactors in November 2014. The project is estimated at $10 billion and will take 10 years to complete.