Report: Iran to Build New Nuclear Power Plant by 2014

Iran plans to build a second nuclear power plant by early 2014, French news agency Agence France-Presse reported.

"Iran will build a 1,000-megawatt nuclear power plant in Bushehr next year," Iran's Atomic Energy Organization head Fereydoon Abbasi Davani reportedly told state television. According to AFP, he was referring to the Iranian calendar year, which runs from March 2013 to March 2014.

The southern city of Bushehr is the site of Iran's sole nuclear power plant, started by German engineers in the 1970s. It went online in September, with Russian help.

Iran also has a research reactor in Tehran used for medical purposes for patients with cancer and other illnesses.

Despite United Nations calls for Iran to curb its activities, Iran has insisted its nuclear program is for peaceful, energy-producing purposes only.

Update: According to the Associated Press, Abbasi said the country is planning to build at least two nuclear power plants.