Iran delays launching of nuclear power plant

Iran's first nuclear power plant will begin supplying energy in early 2011, a senior official said, signaling a delay of several months after the spread of a global computer virus believed to have affected mainly Iran.

Iranian officials said Sunday that the Stuxnet virus had hit staff computers at the Bushehr plant, but hadn't affected major systems there.

When Iran began loading fuel into Bushehr in August, officials said it would take two to three months for the plant to start producing electricity, and that it would generate 1,000 megawatts, about 2.5 percent of the country's power usage.

Security experts say the Stuxnet computer worm may have been a state-sponsored at-tack on Iran's nuclear program, and may have originated in the US or Israel.

Reuters