The Bushehr power plant began supplying 60 megawatts of its 1,000 megawatt capacity to the grid on Saturday night, the country’s Atomic Energy Agency said.
“The capacity will gradually increase,” said Hamid Khadem Qaemi, spokesman at the agency, in comments to Al-Alam Television.
He added that by Sept. 21, the station would be functioning at 40 percent of its capacity.
The country’s nuclear program has been regarded with suspicion internationally but Iran insists that it is entirely peaceful and for civilian purposes.
A confidential report by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), obtained by AFP on Friday, said that it was “increasingly concerned about the possible existence in Iran of past or current undisclosed nuclear related activities involving military related organizations.”
The Bushehr plant was expected to begin operation in November 2010 but had to be shut down because of technical problems.
Mohammad Ahmadian, deputy atomic chief in charge of power plants, told state television the plant was expected to reach full capacity around December this year. However, he said that officials would proceed with caution.
“It is very important for us to take these final steps with utmost safety concerns in mind,” he said. “We want to have guaranteed functional operation.”
