Iran has signed a $25 billion agreement with Russia's Russian state nuclear corporation Rosatom to build four nuclear power plants in Iran, IRNA news agency said on Friday.
Rosatom said on Thursday it signed a memorandum of understanding on Wednesday on the construction of small nuclear power plants in Iran, without giving a number.
Russia previously built Iran’s first and so far only nuclear power plant at Bushehr, which began operating in 2010. The plant, located in the country’s southwest on the Persian Gulf coast, was originally started by Germany in 1975. Construction was halted after the 1979 Islamic Revolution, then revived in 1995 under a deal with Moscow.
Unlike Iran’s other nuclear facilities, Bushehr has not been seen as a significant proliferation risk, in part because it runs on Russian-supplied nuclear fuel. The spent fuel is then returned to Russia for processing, reducing concerns it could be repurposed for military use. The Bushehr plant also was not targeted during Israel’s 12-day war with Iran earlier this year.