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TEHRAN - A senior Iranian nuclear official said today Iran was up to date with payments to Russia, which is building the Islamic Republic's first atomic power plant, the official IRNA news agency reported.
"So far the payments have been accomplished according to the contract and on the basis of the agreed dates that have been set," said Mohammad Saeedi, the deputy head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organisation.
Russian officials said the launch of the power plant in Bushehr in the southwest of the country would be delayed because Tehran has fallen behind with payments and United Nations sanctions had hindered equipment deliveries.
"Iran did not have any delay in the financial payment of Bushehr atomic plant contract," Saeedi added.
Russia's construction of Iran's Bushehr nuclear power plant has become a highly sensitive issue as Tehran comes under pressure from the United States for its nuclear ambitions.
The Kremlin, eager to boost sales of civil nuclear technology, has pushed back the plant's completion date several times over the past decade, citing technical reasons.
- REUTERS
