Bushehr plant to yield 400 MW in Dec.

Head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) says the country’s first nuclear power plant will generate 400 megawatts of electricity in three months.

Ali Akbar Salehi told reporters on Wednesday that the “plant will reach 40 percent” of its 1000-megawatt capacity by late December, when it “will be able to produce 400 MW.”

He said that loading nuclear fuel into the “heart” of the reactor would begin in late September after preliminary dummy fuel injection tests prove successful.

The loading process will then take 20 to 25 days to complete, after which the reactor will produce electricity, he added.

He expressed hope that the Bushehr plant would reach its full capacity in March 2011 but said the dates were “approximate” as possible technical issues could delay the operation.

Fuel was loaded into the facility and placed in the pool next to the reactor in August.

The fuel transfer was supervised by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and senior officials from Iran and Russia.