CLEAN ENERGY-

Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization (AEOI) kicked off construction on the second reactor of its EUR 1.8 bn Bushehr nuclear power plant on Sunday, the Iran News Agency reports. Built by Russia’s state-owned nuclear company Rosatom, the initial 1 GW phase of the project has delivered some 60 bn KWh of electricity since coming online in 2013, including 7 bn KWh last year and 3.5 mn MWh of clean power from the start of the Iranian calendar year on March 21, according to Mehr News Agency. The Iranian government plans to complete and bring online the second unit “in less than five years”, and then kick off operations on the third phase of Bushehr 1.5 years after that, AEOI chief Mohammad Eslami said. The second and third units would increase Bushehr’s power capacity by 104%, extending the power plant’s fuel cycle by up to 18 months and pushing down the country’s reliance on oil by an estimated 10 mn barrels per year. The two planned units would result in USD 1.6 bn worth of gas savings and offset some 7 mn tons of greenhouse gas emissions, Mehr quotes lead project engineer Masoud Nasouri as saying.

Iran approves a 15 GW solar production strategy: Iran’s Economic Council approved a plan to develop additional solar energy projects in the country with a combined 15 GW production capacity last week, the Iran News Agency quotes the country’s First Vice President Mohammad Mokhber as saying. The plan would be carried out with help from Iran’s private sector over three phases and have an estimated USD 8.3 bn investment ticket. No timeline on when the projects would be completed was provided.

Plans in play: Iran’s Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Organization (Satba) said it plans to re-tender solar energy projects yielding 2.2 GW during the current Iranian fiscal year in a bid to expand net-zero power production. In July, Satba said it will build a 1 GW solar farm in Qazvin, and last month the organization committed to buying 1.5 GW of solar power from 10 domestic developers in what it described at the time as the largest agreement of its kind in the country. Last year, Iran said it plans to add 10 GW of renewable capacity by August 2025.

CONSERVATION-

Endangered corals spring back to life in Oman: Oman’s Six Senses Zighy Bay resort successfully completed the first phase of its two-year coral restoration program aimed at reviving the Acropora and Pocillopora coral species, Trade Arabia reported. The resort’s diving center collected 522 coral fragments and attached them in groupings to 10 metal frames anchored to the seafloor to increase the coral's likelihood of surviving until maturity, resulting in robust growth within six months. The resort hopes to replicate across its shores in efforts to repopulate the entire reef.

OTHER STORIES WORTH KNOWING ABOUT THIS MORNING-

• KSA unveils its national forestation roadmap: Saudi Arabia’s government has announced a roadmap for planting some 10 bn trees in the country under its USD 186 bn Saudi Green Initiative. The forestation program aims to reduce temperature levels by “at least 2.2 °C” in the urban areas where the project will be implemented. (SPA)