Latest news with #Ghasemian
Business Wire
30-06-2025
- Business
- Business Wire
Shahram Ghasemian Joins NuScale Power as Chief Legal Officer, Corporate Secretary
CORVALLIS, Ore.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--NuScale Power Corporation (NYSE: SMR), the industry-leading provider of proprietary and innovative advanced small modular reactor (SMR) nuclear technology, today announced the appointment of Shahram Ghasemian as Chief Legal Officer and Corporate Secretary, effective June 30, 2025. Ghasemian is an experienced legal executive with a long tenure working across the energy industry and known as a trusted business partner adept at shaping and advancing corporate strategic goals. He joins NuScale from Centrus Energy Corp., where he most recently served as Senior Vice President, General Counsel, Chief Compliance Officer, and Corporate Secretary. Before Centrus, Ghasemian held several leadership positions within the federal government from 2006 to 2020, including the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) and serving as a Senior Legislative Fellow on nuclear policy issues on Capitol Hill. He started his career in the nuclear energy sector in 1997 with Centrus' predecessor, holding legal positions of increasing responsibility and handling a wide range of issues, including litigation, employment, and compliance matters, as well as complex nuclear fuel sales and related agreements. 'I am thrilled to welcome Shahram to NuScale Power,' said John Hopkins, NuScale President and Chief Executive Officer. 'His broad expertise in legal, regulatory, compliance, and governance matters within the nuclear sector and the federal government will be a tremendous asset, as we pursue our mission to deliver safe, reliable, and clean energy solutions.' Ghasemian said: 'Joining NuScale Power during this pivotal moment for the energy industry is an honor. With NRC-approved designs, NuScale is moving ever closer to deployment. The company's dedication to innovation and its leadership in providing safe, clean, and reliable energy solutions presents a remarkable opportunity to improve our collective quality of life and promote a sustainable future. I am eager to work alongside the talented team at NuScale to drive this important initiative forward." Ghasemian holds a Juris Doctor, cum laude, from the University of Illinois Chicago School of Law and a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil and Environmental Engineering from the University of Wisconsin. About NuScale Power Founded in 2007, NuScale Power Corporation (NYSE: SMR) is the industry-leading provider of proprietary and innovative advanced small modular reactor (SMR) nuclear technology, with a mission to help power the global energy transition by delivering safe, scalable, and reliable carbon-free energy. The NuScale Power Module™, the company's groundbreaking SMR technology, is a small, safe, pressurized water reactor that can each generate 77 megawatts of electricity (MWe) or 250 megawatts thermal (gross), and can be scaled to meet customer needs through an array of flexible configurations up to 924 MWe (12 modules) of output. As the first and only SMR to have its designs certified by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, NuScale is well-positioned to serve diverse customers across the world by supplying nuclear energy for electrical generation, data centers, district heating, desalination, commercial-scale hydrogen production, and other process heat applications. To learn more, visit NuScale Power's website or follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, X and YouTube. Forward Looking Statements This release may contain forward-looking statements (including without limitation statements containing words such as "will," "believes," "expects," 'anticipates,' "plans" or other similar expressions). These forward-looking statements include statements relating to strategic and operational plans and expectations, including moving ever closer to deployment, improving our collective quality of life, and promoting a sustainable future, capital deployment, future growth, new awards, backlog, earnings and the outlook for the company's business. Actual results may differ materially as a result of a number of factors, including, among other things, the Company's liquidity and ability to raise capital; the Company's failure to receive new contract awards; cost overruns, project delays or other problems arising from project execution activities, including the failure to meet cost and schedule estimates; our expectations regarding obtaining regulatory approvals, and the timing thereof, to deploy our SMRs in the United States and abroad; forecasts regarding end-user adoption rates and demand for our products in the markets that are new and rapidly evolving; limitations on the effectiveness of controls and procedures and our remediation plans related thereto; intense competition in the industries in which we operate; failure of our partners to perform their obligations; cyber-security breaches; foreign economic and political uncertainties; client cancellations of, or scope adjustments to, existing contracts; failure to maintain safe worksites and international security risks; risks or uncertainties associated with events outside of our control, including weather conditions, pandemics (including COVID-19), public health crises, political crises or other catastrophic events; macroeconomic conditions; the use of estimates and assumptions in preparing our financial statements; client delays or defaults in making payments; the failure of our suppliers, subcontractors and other third parties to adequately perform services under our contracts; uncertainties, restrictions and regulations impacting our government contracts; the inability to hire and retain qualified personnel; the potential impact of certain tax matters; possible information technology interruptions; the Company's ability to secure appropriate insurance; liabilities associated with the performance of nuclear services; foreign currency risks; the loss of one or a few clients that account for a significant portion of the Company's revenues; damage to our reputation; failure to adequately protect intellectual property rights; asset impairments; climate change and related environmental issues; increasing scrutiny with respect to sustainability practices; the availability of credit and restrictions imposed by credit facilities for our clients, suppliers, subcontractors or other partners; failure to obtain favorable results in existing or future litigation and regulatory proceedings, dispute resolution proceedings or claims, including claims for additional costs; failure by us or our employees, agents or partners to comply with laws; new or changing legal requirements, including those relating to environmental, health and safety matters; failure to successfully implement our strategic and operational initiatives and restrictions on possible transactions imposed by our charter documents and Delaware law. Caution must be exercised in relying on these and other forward-looking statements. Due to known and unknown risks, the Company's results may differ materially from its expectations and projections. Additional information concerning these and other factors can be found in the Company's public periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the 'SEC'), including the general economic conditions and other risks, uncertainties and factors set forth in the section entitled 'Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements' and 'Summary of Risk Factors' in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2024 and in subsequent filings with the SEC. The referenced SEC filings are available either publicly or upon request from NuScale's Investor Relations Department at ir@ The Company disclaims any intent or obligation other than as required by law to update the forward-looking statements.
Middle East Eye
09-06-2025
- Politics
- Middle East Eye
Iranian press review: Conservative media demand rejection of US proposal
Critics say US proposal not worth answering The new US proposal for a nuclear deal with Iran has drawn sharp criticism from Iranian conservative media, with some urging Iranian diplomats to halt the negotiations. The Jame Jam daily, run by the country's only state broadcaster, last Tuesday dedicated all of its main content to the issue. Its main front-page story addressed Iran's foreign minister directly, with the headline: 'Mr Araghchi! America's new damn nonsense is not worth a response.' It read: 'America's history of making excessive demands and the topics they have raised show that Washington's proposal does not deserve a reply.' The article was in response to recent remarks by Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, who said Iran would soon issue a written response to the US proposal. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters Jame Jam also criticised the Massoud Pezeshkian administration's handling of talks with the US. In a column by conservative media analyst Sepehr Khalaji, the daily urged the government to 'learn a lesson' from previous negotiations that had failed to produce results. Another conservative analyst, Morad Anadi, contrasted the international pressure on Iran's nuclear programme with the silence surrounding Israel's. 'In this unfair system, which is called nuclear apartheid, the Zionist regime has more than 200 nuclear warheads, is not a member of the NPT, and has never allowed inspections of its nuclear sites,' he said. Rare unity as politicians slam cleric arrested in Saudi Arabia The arrest of Gholamreza Ghasemian, an extremist Iranian cleric, in Saudi Arabia has sparked rare unity in Iranian domestic politics, with all political factions, including from principlists and reformists, condemning the controversial figure. Ghasemian, who in recent years had gained strong support from conservative and hard-line groups in Iran, criticised Saudi Arabia's rulers in a video he posted online while in the country for the Hajj pilgrimage. What is stopping Israel from bombing Iran's nuclear sites? Read More » Following his arrest and deportation by Saudi authorities, the conservative Iranian daily Quds criticised his remarks, writing: 'An incident like this, at a time when the Iranian diplomatic team is rebuilding regional relations, creates a negative impact. It also sows division in the Islamic world; exactly what the United States and the Zionist regime want.' The reformist newspaper Arman Melli welcomed the principlists' condemnation of Ghasemian, calling it a sign of the government's efforts to avoid extremist policies. Abdolreza Davari, a reformist political activist, wrote in an opinion piece for Arman Melli, titled: 'The political climate in the Islamic Republic is changing." He wrote: 'Radical behaviour and speech no longer have a place at the highest levels of governance. A clear example of this shift is the cold response from both the government and public opinion to Qasemian's recent remarks in Medina.' Jalal Rashidi Kochi, a former member of the Iranian parliament, also posted on X: 'Mr Ghasemian, you are not serving religion or the revolution. You are deliberately causing harm to the country, the people, and the establishment. This action is not courage, and it is not stupidity. It is treason.' IRGC criticised for 'hell' attraction in northern city The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has come under fire for building a 'hell' attraction in the northern city of Fuman, based on Shia Islamic beliefs. After facing backlash, the IRGC announced plans to build a 'paradise' site as well, a move that has only added to the criticism. In a video shared on social media, visitors are shown walking across a metal bridge suspended just above real flames. In the background, actors perform scenes meant to represent torture in hell, including flogging. Ayatollah Seyyed Mohammad Ali Ayazi, a renowned religious scholar, strongly reacted to the project. 'People are already suffering from economic hardship, poverty, poor management, electricity and gas shortages, water issues, and many other problems,' he said. 'Why would you want to add to their suffering?' Political activist Abdolreza Davari also criticised the project, pointing to the country's winter gas shortages. He estimated the gas consumption of the attraction: 'If the Fuman hell uses 150 burners for four hours a day, and each burner uses 20 cubic metres of gas per hour, then it burns 12,000 cubic meters of gas every day. That is equal to the daily gas use of 480 homes in winter and costs about $2,400 per day.' China planes-for-oil deal sparks outcry The arrival of two used Airbus A330 planes from China to Iran has triggered criticism over the exploitative nature of the economic deals between the two countries. Saudi Arabian and Omani officials propose nuclear facilities for Iran on Gulf island: Report Read More » Local media reported that the planes were sold at nearly four times their actual value, raising concerns about exploitation under international sanctions. The story was first reported by the Iranian Labour News Agency (ILNA), which claimed that "the Chinese sold $30m worth of planes for $116m". According to ILNA, Haokun Energy, a Chinese company, took advantage of Iran's limited access to global oil markets and banking systems, caused by international sanctions. The planes were reportedly delivered in exchange for Iranian oil. This is not the first time Chinese companies have been accused of benefiting from US sanctions against Iran. However, it is one of the highest sums publicly mentioned in this context. ILNA also highlighted other issues related to Haokun Energy, noting that the company still owes substantial amounts of money to Iran. Under the previous government, the Chinese company signed a $2.5bn development project for Imam Khomeini Airport, again in exchange for Iranian oil. Experts at the time said the project's fees were extremely high. * Iranian press review is a digest of news reports not independently verified as accurate by Middle East Eye.
Yahoo
29-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Saudi authorities release Iranian cleric arrested for bad mouthing Kingdom, Sunnah
Iranian cleric Ghasemian was arrested in Mecca for insulting Saudi Arabia but was quickly released and returned to Iran before completing Hajj. Both countries downplayed the incident. Hojjatoleslam Gholamreza Ghasemian, a cleric and TV presenter affiliated with the Iranian regime and close to Khamenei's household, was recently released after being arrested inMecca for filming a video that insulted the Saudi government and Sunni beliefs, while on Saudi soil. Ghasemian uploaded the video earlier this week, as he was on pilgrimage in Mecca. He addressed his viewers with a Quranic verse about divine punishment for wrongdoers before launching a sharp critique of conditions in Saudi Arabia's holy cities. He sarcastically suggested that viewers could "just travel to Makkah and Madinah" instead of going to Antalya, Turkey, claiming that the Saudis, whom he referred to as "merchants and usurpers' of Mecca, have established "gambling houses, prostitution centers, and raunchy concerts" in the holy cities. He then proceeded to compare these alleged conditions to "the Umayyad workhouses," a historical reference to the dynasty of rulers of the 7th-8th centuries Islamic empire, traditionally viewed in Islamic historiography as having strayed from Islam. The Iranian cleric emphasized in his video that "what is happening here… represents not just atheism, but the essence of atheism." Ghasemian urged his followers: 'Don't be fooled by diplomatic visits,' referring to Saudi-Iranian relations. He highlighted what he deemed were severe restrictions on pilgrims, suggesting that these conditions signal divine intervention is imminent. Finally, Ghssemian concluded with a prayer that the Shiite "Owners of the House (of Allah) would 'retake' Mecca out of the hands of the 'merchants and usurpers of the Qibla." Strikingly, Iranian state media reported the arrest as a result of 'comments Ghasemian made regarding the situation in Mecca and Madina', without disclosing any further information regarding the defamatory content of the cleric's address, and without posting the video he made. Despite Ghasemian's defamatory comments and the backlash they drew on social media, the countries decided to sustain a de-escalated diplomatic atmosphere. During Ghasemian's arrest, Alireza Enayati, the Islamic Republic's ambassador to Saudi Arabia, lauded Saudi Arabian authorities for 'making every effort to serve Iranian pilgrims.' He added, without referring directly to the arrest, that 'Iranian pilgrims respect the sanctity of these places and adhere to the prevailing laws, and no one accepts obscene and offensive words." From their part, Saudi state-controlled media outlets maintained a resounding silence, avoiding reports regarding the affair. Ghasemian's quick release may also signify a will to remain on good terms with Iran, despite the perceived grave offense of badmouthing the kingdom. Ghasemian returned to Iran on Thursday, and local social media accounts showed crowds celebrating his arrival at the airport. However, online users noted that his return from Saudi Arabia at this time means that he was prevented from completing the Hajj, as the rituals are still ongoing.
Time of India
29-05-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
Saudi government frees Iranian cleric Gholamreza Ghasemian after being arrested for ‘obscene concerts' remarks
Iranian cleric Gholamreza Ghasemian (Image credit: X/InfoSudLiban) Iranian cleric Gholamreza Ghasemian, who was arrested for his controversial 'obscene concerts' remarks, was freed by the Saudi government on Thursday, ISNA reported. Saudi authorities arrested Ghasemian on Monday while he was performing rituals of the hajj in Mecca after a video went viral. In a veiled attack on the Saudi government, Ghasemian, dressed in a white pilgrimage robe, had accused them of turning the Qibla -– the direction Muslims face in prayer -– into "a place for gambling houses, centres of debauchery, and obscene concerts".His comments referred to the social changes made in recent years by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the kingdom's de facto leader. ISNA confirmed that Gholamreza Ghasemian is currently on his way back to Iran, following efforts by Iranian officials to secure his release. 'Obscene...': Iranian Cleric's Viral Video 'Insult' Rocks Saudi; Tehran Hajj Visas Halted I Details Earlier, reacting to the arrest, Iran's foreign minister Abbas Araghchi, on Tuesday evening, said on X, "Iran in no uncertain terms condemns any attempt to harm Muslim unity, particularly in the spiritual atmosphere of the hajj." "We are determined to not allow anyone to sabotage relations with our brotherly neighbours, including the progressive path of Iran and Saudi Arabia", Araghchi added. Expressing his personal opinions, Iranian judiciary spokesman Asghar Jahangir described the cleric's arrest as "unjustified and unlawful". The controversy has strained ties between Iran and Saudi Arabia. According to the Iran Wire, Riyadh has now suspended Hajj visas issuance for Iranians. Riyadh's move has affected Iranian pilgrims participating in this year's Hajj.
Express Tribune
29-05-2025
- Politics
- Express Tribune
Iran confirms meetings with cleric held in KSA
Listen to article Iran said Wednesday it has held consular meetings with a cleric detained during the annual Hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia, according to local media. Gholamreza Ghasemian, a well-known cleric and religious figure in Iran, was arrested in the kingdom on Monday after a video circulated online showing him criticising the Saudi government, Iran's ISNA news agency reported. Saudi authorities have not confirmed the arrest. In the footage, Ghasemian, dressed in white pilgrimage robes, accused Saudi leaders of turning the Qibla into "a place for gambling houses, centres of debauchery, and obscene concerts". Alireza Bayat, head of Iran's Hajj organisation, said Iranian officials had held three consular meetings with Ghasemian in coordination with the embassy and consulate in Jeddah, ISNA reported.
