TEHRAN, Aug. 19 (Xinhua) -- Iran is preparing to build more nuclear power plants, the official IRNA news agency reported on Tuesday.

    Ahmad Fayyazbakhsh, deputy chief of Iran's Atomic Energy Organization and head of a state-owned nuclear energy production company said that his company signed an agreement with six local companies, assigning them to hunt for potential sites for new nuclear power plants within 13 months.

    Construction of the power plants can begin after the finalization of the location of the sites, Fayyazbakhsh said.

    "Out of 120 participant companies, including 62 foreign and 58 Iranian ones, six Iranian companies were winners of the tender," he added.

    Russia is helping Iran to build the country's first nuclear power plant in the southern port of Bushehr. The plant was expected to launch early this year, but its operation was postponed for several months due to disputes on payment.

    The United States and its Western allies fear that Tehran is trying to build nuclear weapons. Iran insists that its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes only.