RIO DE JANEIRO, Aug. 19 (Xinhua) -- Brazil is to build a further four nuclear power plants in addition to finishing the halted Angra III plant, local media said Tuesday.

    Two plants will be built in the northeast and the other two will be built in the southeast, where three Angra plants are already located, local media said, adding that the four plants are expected to begin operating by 2014.

    The decision was made by Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva at a meeting Monday night.

    Lula also demanded a permanent solution to nuclear waste stored at the Angra I and Angra II plants. The National Committee on Nuclear Energy (NCNE) and the state-owned company Eletronuclear were asked to take responsibility for the problem.

    Although it has the monopoly on nuclear power generation in Brazil, Eletronuclear will not get the green-light to start construction until it comes up with a permanent solution to the nuclear waste.

    The construction of Angra III began in 1984, but was halted two years later due to public pressure and lack of money.

    Recently, the federal government decided to resume construction, arguing that 750 million U.S. dollars invested in the project since 1984 cannot be wasted.

    The government estimated that it will cost another 4.56 billion U.S. dollars to finish Angra III.