Darkhovin Nuclear Power Plant
Encyclopedia
The Darkhovin Nuclear Power Plant (also known as Estehlal Nuclear Power Plant) is a planned nuclear
power plant
located about 70 kilometers south of Ahvaz
, Iran
at the Karun
river. One reactor is firmly planned. Some other projects on this site were cancelled.
, Iran
had signed a contract with French company Framatome to build two 950 MW pressurized water reactor
s, at Darkhovin
. After the Revolution, France
withdrew from the project. Construction of the power station
was halted during Iran-Iraq war
. In 1992, Iran signed an agreement with China
to build two 300 MW reactors at the site, which were to be completed within ten years and would have been similar to Chashma Nuclear Power Complex
in Pakistan which is built by China. But later on China withdrew from the project under United States
pressure.
The project was subsequently taken up by Iran itself, as no other country was ready to cooperate in its construction. Iran started to indigenously design the reactor for Darkhovin Nuclear Power Plant basing the design on IR-40
reactor using heavy water
. The Iranian nuclear reactor design has a capacity of 360 MWh. The work on the plant began in 2008 and it is scheduled to come online in 2016. There is currently no public information on how many reactors the power station
is planned to house. The plant is going to be Iran's first indigenously designed and built nuclear power plant besides the research reactor
of IR-40.
, Crash of '79, Darkhovin Nuclear Power Plant is mentioned to have been completed by France
and Mohammed Reza Pahlavi the then Shah
of Iran uses the plant with the help from Israel
and Switzerland
to manufacture a dozen salted bomb
s. Mohammed Reza Pahlavi, who is fictionalized to be a psychotic
, then uses the bombs and attempts to make an empire, albeit unsuccessfully as United States Air Force
bombs his command compound, killing him in the process. Strangely he predicted end of Pahlavi dynasty exactly in 1979 but contrary to his depiction it was as a result of Iranian Revolution
.
Nuclear power
Nuclear power is the use of sustained nuclear fission to generate heat and electricity. Nuclear power plants provide about 6% of the world's energy and 13–14% of the world's electricity, with the U.S., France, and Japan together accounting for about 50% of nuclear generated electricity...
power plant
Power station
A power station is an industrial facility for the generation of electric energy....
located about 70 kilometers south of Ahvaz
Ahvaz
-History:For a more comprehensive historical treatment of the area, see the history section of Khūzestān Province.-Ancient history:Ahvaz is the anagram of "Avaz" and "Avaja" which appear in Darius's epigraph...
, Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
at the Karun
Karun
The Kārun is Iran's most effluent, and the only navigable, river. It is 450 miles long. It rises in the Zard Kuh mountains of the Bakhtiari district in the Zagros Range, receiving many tributaries, such as the Dez and the Kuhrang, before passing through the capital of the Khuzestan Province of...
river. One reactor is firmly planned. Some other projects on this site were cancelled.
History
Before the Iranian RevolutionIranian Revolution
The Iranian Revolution refers to events involving the overthrow of Iran's monarchy under Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi and its replacement with an Islamic republic under Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the leader of the...
, Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
had signed a contract with French company Framatome to build two 950 MW pressurized water reactor
Pressurized water reactor
Pressurized water reactors constitute a large majority of all western nuclear power plants and are one of three types of light water reactor , the other types being boiling water reactors and supercritical water reactors...
s, at Darkhovin
Darkhovin
Darkhovin is a city in Iran's Khūzestān Province. The city is the site for construction of Iran's indigenously designed Darkhovin Nuclear Power Plant.- External links :*...
. After the Revolution, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
withdrew from the project. Construction of the power station
Power station
A power station is an industrial facility for the generation of electric energy....
was halted during Iran-Iraq war
Iran-Iraq War
The Iran–Iraq War was an armed conflict between the armed forces of Iraq and Iran, lasting from September 1980 to August 1988, making it the longest conventional war of the twentieth century...
. In 1992, Iran signed an agreement with China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
to build two 300 MW reactors at the site, which were to be completed within ten years and would have been similar to Chashma Nuclear Power Complex
Chashma Nuclear Power Complex
The Chashma Nuclear Power Complex near Chashma city, Punjab, Pakistan, is a commercial nuclear power generation complex, consisting of Chashma Nuclear Power Plant-I and Chashma Nuclear Power Plant-II with CHASNUPP-III and CHASNUPP-IV are in the planning stages...
in Pakistan which is built by China. But later on China withdrew from the project under United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
pressure.
The project was subsequently taken up by Iran itself, as no other country was ready to cooperate in its construction. Iran started to indigenously design the reactor for Darkhovin Nuclear Power Plant basing the design on IR-40
IR-40
IR-40 is an Iranian 40 megawatt heavy water reactor under construction in Arak. While the basic design was completed in 2002, the IAEA was informed on May 5, 2003 that construction would begin in June 2004...
reactor using heavy water
Heavy water
Heavy water is water highly enriched in the hydrogen isotope deuterium; e.g., heavy water used in CANDU reactors is 99.75% enriched by hydrogen atom-fraction...
. The Iranian nuclear reactor design has a capacity of 360 MWh. The work on the plant began in 2008 and it is scheduled to come online in 2016. There is currently no public information on how many reactors the power station
Power station
A power station is an industrial facility for the generation of electric energy....
is planned to house. The plant is going to be Iran's first indigenously designed and built nuclear power plant besides the research reactor
Research reactor
Research reactors are nuclear reactors that serve primarily as a neutron source. They are also called non-power reactors, in contrast to power reactors that are used for electricity production, heat generation, or maritime propulsion.-Purpose:...
of IR-40.
In fiction
In 1976 novel of Paul ErdmanPaul Erdman
Paul Emil Erdman was one of the leading business and financial writers in the United States who became known for writing novels based on monetary trends and historical facts concerning complex matters of international finance.-Early life:Erdman was born in Stratford, Ontario, Canada, on 19 May...
, Crash of '79, Darkhovin Nuclear Power Plant is mentioned to have been completed by France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
and Mohammed Reza Pahlavi the then Shah
Shah
Shāh is the title of the ruler of certain Southwest Asian and Central Asian countries, especially Persia , and derives from the Persian word shah, meaning "king".-History:...
of Iran uses the plant with the help from Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
and Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
to manufacture a dozen salted bomb
Salted bomb
A salted bomb is a variation of a nuclear weapon designed to produce enhanced quantities of radioactive fallout, rendering a large area uninhabitable...
s. Mohammed Reza Pahlavi, who is fictionalized to be a psychotic
Psychosis
Psychosis means abnormal condition of the mind, and is a generic psychiatric term for a mental state often described as involving a "loss of contact with reality"...
, then uses the bombs and attempts to make an empire, albeit unsuccessfully as United States Air Force
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...
bombs his command compound, killing him in the process. Strangely he predicted end of Pahlavi dynasty exactly in 1979 but contrary to his depiction it was as a result of Iranian Revolution
Iranian Revolution
The Iranian Revolution refers to events involving the overthrow of Iran's monarchy under Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi and its replacement with an Islamic republic under Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the leader of the...
.
Reactor data
| Reactor unit | Reactor type | Net capacity |
Gross capacity |
Construction started (Planned) |
Electricity Grid |
Commercial Operation |
Shutdown |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Darkhovin | Pressurized Water Reactor | 330 MW | 360 MW | (1 January 2011) | - | - | - |
| Estehlal-1 | Pressurized Water Reactor | 280 MW | 300 MW | Cancelled Plan | |||
| Estehlel-2 | Pressurized Water Reactor | 280 MW | 300 MW | Cancelled Plan | |||
See also
- List of power stations in Iran
- International rankings of Iran
- Bushehr Nuclear Power PlantBushehr Nuclear Power PlantThe Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant is a nuclear power plant in Iran southeast of the city of Bushehr, between the fishing villages of Halileh and Bandargeh along the Persian Gulf. The plant is located at the junction of three tectonic plates....
- IR-40IR-40IR-40 is an Iranian 40 megawatt heavy water reactor under construction in Arak. While the basic design was completed in 2002, the IAEA was informed on May 5, 2003 that construction would begin in June 2004...
- Operation MerlinOperation MerlinOperation Merlin is an alleged United States covert operation under the Clinton Administration to provide Iran with a flawed design for building a nuclear weapon in order to delay the alleged Iranian nuclear weapons program.-History:...
- Green Salt ProjectGreen Salt ProjectThe Green Salt Project is an alleged secretive Iranian entity focusing on uranium processing, high explosives and a missile warhead design...
- Oghab 2Oghab 2Ouqab 2 is an Iranian counter-espionage agency set up in December 2005 aimed at protecting its nuclear programme against external operations. Its creation would have been decided after the arrest of two foreign agents collecting information about two previously unknown nuclear plants in Parchin and...