Though an oil producer and exporter, Argentina's reserves are running low and its demand is higher, while investment has lagged.

Argentina has had the Atucha I nuclear power plant since 1974, as well as the Embalse plant, which both generate power.

Construction on Atucha II started in 1981 but had to be stopped several times. The government says about 600 million dollars are needed to finish it.

Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL) will be a partner in the plan, modernizing technology at the Embalse plant which operates with Canadian Candu technology.

In the longer run however the government also wants to build a fourth plant, according to a working document, as well as resume production of enriched uranium that was frozen in the 1980s.

Atucha I and Embalse generate 7-9 percent of the country's electricity, and that figure is expected to rise to 16 percent when Atucha II goes on line.

Argentina, the first Latin American country to get into the nuclear industry, now exports its technology. It recently sold a reactor to Australia and also exports to Algeria, South Korea, Belgium and Germany.

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