(JTA) — Iran began placing uranium fuel rods in the Bushehr nuclear plant.
Once the 163 fuel rods are set inside the core of the nuclear power plant, Bushehr will be fully operational. The plant should begin generating electricity in early 2011, Iranian Press TV reported Tuesday, citing Iranian officials.
Fuel rods were transferred to the nuclear plant under the supervision of the International Atomic Energy Agency.
The plant was launched in August and completed with the help of Russia; the two countries signed a deal in 1995. Construction of the plant had begun in 1975 under a contract with Germany, which pulled out following the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
Iran is under U.S. and international sanctions because of its nuclear program, which the West believes could be used to produce nuclear weapons.
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