Iran has resumed talks with Russia to build a new nuclear power plant capable of generating up to 3,000 megawatts of electricity, its energy minister Reza Ardakanian said Saturday, Reuters reported.
The Islamic Republic currently has the capacity to produce 1,000 megawatts of nuclear electricity, reported the Tasnim news agency.
Iran already runs one Russian-built nuclear reactor at Bushehr, which was its first. Russia and Iran signed a deal in 2014 to build up to eight more reactors in the country.
In recent years, Russia and Iran signed a number of trade and investment deals to help boost their economies.
In addition, Russia sold to Iran its S-300 anti-aircraft missile system, that has long worried U.S. and Israeli military officials because it gives the Islamic Republic a “generational improvement in capabilities.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree in 2015 lifting a ban on the delivery of the S-300 to Iran, explaining that his decision was motivated by Iran's drive to find a solution in talks over its nuclear program.
Despite the lifting of the ban, the sale had been repeatedly delayed due to Western pressure given that UN nuclear sanctions ban the delivery to Iran.
Russia finally delivered the S-300 to Iran in 2016 and the Pentagon said earlier this year the system has been deployed by the Islamic Republic.