Iran: Leak caused Bushehr plant delay, not PC worm

Iranian nuclear chief announces that water leak in pool near nuclear reactor has now been fixed, gives no details on nature of malfunction.

By ASSOCIATED PRESS, JPOST.COM STAFF
Bushehr Reactor 311 (photo credit: Associated Press)
Bushehr Reactor 311
(photo credit: Associated Press)
TEHERAN — A "small leak" and not a computer worm is the cause of a delay in the starting up of the country's first nuclear power plant, Iranian nuclear chief Ali Akbar Salehi said Monday.
Salehi, who is also the Iranian vice president, said the leak in a pool near the reactor at the Bushehr plant has now been fixed.
His remarks were carried Monday by the official IRNA news agency. He did not provide details on the nature of the leak.
Salehi insisted on Thursday that a month's delay in powering-up Bushehr has nothing to do with a computer worm infiltrating its reactor. He also said the plant's systems were not affected.
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Iranian Press TV reported that Salehi announced Sunday that fuel will be inserted into the core of the Busheher power plant in mid-October."Prior to the fuel injection, the core of the reactor will be washed out and then physical reaction and several tests will be conducted," Salehi told the official IRNA news agency on Sunday.Salehi said that Busheher was in "proper condition" and 15 experimental fuel rods had already been inserted into the core of the reactor and then taken out, according to Press TV.